While the band had been working on new music since January 2006 , by October 2007 Armstrong had written 45 songs , the band showed no further signs of being close to releasing a new album until October 2008 , when a video of the group recording with producer Butch Vig in the studio was posted on YouTube . The band had been working on new material since January 2006 . By October 2007 , Armstrong had 45 songs written , but the band showed no further signs of progress until October 2008 , when two videos showing the band recorded in the studio with producer Butch Vig were posted on YouTube .