Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker has offered his thoughts on guitarist Tom DeLonge's alienation from the group.

Barker and bassist Mark Hoppus confirmed earlier this year that they will be playing a California festival without DeLonge after he "quit".

However, DeLonge retaliated by suggesting that he didn't explicitly leave the band.

Speaking to Alternative Nation in a new interview, drummer Barker commented:

"I think the right thing for him to do would [be to] just man up and quit the band instead of telling people he didn't quit and just be real with the fans. I think that would give him some closure too and really do what he's passionate about.

"Even amongst all the other projects I do, I can always find a way to prioritise and still be passionate about Blink-182 when it comes around. I love playing, listening and everything about punk rock. It changed my life. I think for Tom, he doesn't like punk music and it was a phase for him."

The sticksman added: "I think this is the third time he's quit without anyone knowing about it because we didn't announce the other times. But this is just the last straw. It's just not cool for the fans.

"He'd always agree to go on huge tours and record albums, but when it came down to going into the studio, he'd find some excuse not to. And we wouldn't even hear from him; it would be his management. It comes to a point where you decide you're not going to force anyone to do anything they don't want to do and it's time to move on."

Blink-182 will perform with Alkaline Trio's Matt Skiba at the Musink Festival on March 22 in Orange County.

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