How the legendary pop-punk band made a comeback in a big way after losing one of their founding members.
Blink-182 (L to R: Matt Skiba, Mark Hoppus, and Travis Barker)
There are few bands that have the repour that Blink-182 has. In fact, for most of the bands I’ve covered so far, almost all of them cite Blink as one of their heroes growing up. The band rose to fame in the 90s with their self-titled album, Enema of the State, and one of my all-time favorite records, Take of Your Pants and Jacket. The antics and juvenile nature of the band and some of their songs attracted fans and made a lasting impression. Blink’s most famous line-up featured singer and guitarist Tom DeLonge, bassist and singer Mark Hoppus, and legendary drummer Travis Barker. However, in 2015 DeLonge made the choice to leave the band. While it seemed like the end of the line for a legendary scene band, not even a year later, Hoppus and Barker announced that Matt Skiba (from the Alkaline Trio) would join the band as the missing piece.
New Line-up, Same Blink
In 2016, the revamped Blink-182 released the album California. This album wasn’t just good, it was great. This was the follow up to 2011’s Neighborhoods, which made critics and fans alike think that Blink had lost their touch. (Though as a side note my favorite all time Blink song “After Midnight” is on that album.) California proved everyone otherwise. The album has a listed sixteen songs, but in actuality two of the songs are classic, crass Blink songs; both “Built This Pool,” and “Brohemiam Rhapsody” are less than thirty seconds and play essentially as one-liners.
Besides those two songs, Blink stepped up the maturity factor in their music. While some of the songs such as, “No Future” and “Rabbit Hole” are still a little lighthearted, and fun, they still touch on some serious topics and are nothing like the material from their earlier albums.
Stand Out Tracks
Easily the most famous song off California, “Bored To Death” was the perfect first single. It highlights Barker’s amazing skills on drums and has impactful lyrics that perfectly compliment Hoppus’ deep tenor, and Skiba’s mid-range vocals that allow for a nice duality between the two singers. When played live, I think the most interesting part is that Skiba and Hoppus actually sing the “oh oh oh oh oh” that starts in the bridge instead of having a backing track do it for them. It allows for imperfections in the song, which isn’t a hinderance in this case, it actually makes the song more fun to listen to.
Stand out tracks, both in studio and live include, “Sober,” “Bored to Death,” “Cynical,” “No Future,” “Teenage Satellites,” and “California.” I would add “She’s Out of Her Mind” and “Home Is Such a Lonely Place” to the studio stand out tracks as well. While I think that those two songs are two of Blink’s best in almost their entire repertoire, they just didn’t translate well to a silly, goofy, and fast paced live show. Even though “California” is a little bit slower and stripped down, it works with the theme of the album and especially when they toured on the California Tour.
Going to 'The Rock Show'
I had been dying to see Blink-182 for a while by the time I actually got to in 2016. I was still in high school and had come out on the other side of my ‘emo phase’ still loving Blink. When they announced they were going on tour with All Time Low (my favorite band at the time) and A Day to Remember I was sold, and I knew I had to go. Because I had forced my love of All Time Low onto my friends, I was able to convince them to come with me. It was the first time I went to a concert without my parents where I truly felt like I was one of the youngest people there. Blink did a great job of incorporating California into their set as well. Of the sixteen songs on the album, seven made the setlist, but there were two additional songs played from the album during their soundcheck.
I had not been so entertained by a band in so long. I had been excited to see Blink, but I admit I wasn’t (and still am not) completely versed in their full discography so they played a couple of songs I either hadn’t heard before, or ones that I had heard but definitely didn’t know the lyrics to. Hoppus was as energetic as ever, jumping and running across the stage. Barker was entertaining all his own. He is such an amazing performer, who commands the stage even though he is situated behind a drum kit. He is innovative and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a drum solo that long or well executed.
Travis Barker behind his drum kit, circa 2018
Photo by Gustavo Caballero
They are a band I am itching to go see live again. I’m not entirely sure when that will be as Travis Barker has recently gained some recognition for collaborating with Machine Gun Kelly and marrying one of the Kardashians. On top of that Mark Hoppus has just beaten cancer and might not be up to touring in the near future.
California had a great impact on me as a music lover. The lyrics showed a more mature Blink-182, that even though I’m thirty years younger than them, I can relate to. There are anthems that soar across the whole album, and I’ve always been impressed by the fact that as only a three-piece band, they are able to make such musically filled out songs. I used to have buttons on my backpack, I’ve mostly taken them off now that I’m in grad school, and I’m switching between my school and work backpack. But I have two pins, one of each of the characters from the California album cover, no one ever really knew what they were, or why they were positioned next to each other when all the other buttons were so spread out. However, every once in a while, there would be someone who would tap my shoulder and just say, “I love that Blink album,” and move on. It always reminds me of my love for this album and the pathways that Blink-182 created for all my other favorite bands.
Do you agree? Did you like the 2016 album? Let me know in the comments!
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