Good Charlotte went on hiatus to reboot creativity

Good Charlotte went on a break to recapture the creative spirit they had before their first ever record, according to Benji Madden.

The Anthem singers went on hiatus in 2011 so they could get away from "the grind" of making music and touring, but excited fans in November (15) when they announced they were returning after five years.

The group headed back out on the road this month (Apr16) ahead of the release of their sixth album Youth Authority, and Benji, who fronts the band with twin brother Joel, admits they hit pause on the band to try and get back the creative mindset they had before they released first record in 2000, and experience life without the pressure of making one album after another.

"I think the reason that we took a break from the band was to find that spirit again, and the only way we could do that is living our lives and stepping away from it," he told. CBS Local in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. "You go into making your first record and essentially you had 18 years to write it... All of the sudden everyone knows your band and all in the sudden there's a demand, and then it's like 'oh we got to write another one'.

"You don't necessarily ever write one record from the same place, and you always wish you could get back to that feeling you had before that first record. Before you knew. When you were still green."

In the break, Benji and Joel fronted their own duo The Madden Brothers and released an album in 2014, wrote for other artists, and worked as judges on Australia's version of The Voice.

Benji also got married to actress Cameron Diaz in January, 2015, while Joel has two children Harlow, eight, and Sparrow, six with wife Nicole Richie.

Benji is convinced the focus on their personal life has helped the band recapture that feeling, adding, "I think getting time away from the band and all of us getting to live our lives and spend time with our families and be married, we did actually go away from the band. So we did come back and make this record, almost like we were starting all over again."