Blink-182 always has a special place in my heart. Without trying to sound too dramatic, Blink-182 is the reason I love music. I'm not going to tell you they write brilliant music. The lyrics and chords won't see themselves into any lists of "Best Ever." That said, Blink-182 had catchy beats and lyrics that the 9-14 year old in myself could relate to. That young of an age determines the path of your passion and hobbies - will you like music or are you the quiet type? Do you like sports? Which teams? You don't see many people change allegiances after these early adolescent years. They define most people.
Take Off Your Pants and Jacket was the first album I ever listened to front to end - in a CD Player - and I probably listened to it literally over 200 times. By that time Napster and pirating was taking off, so getting into more Blink songs certainly wasn't difficult. So they were truly my first musical love. When your young you don't know how simple the music is, you're living a simple life. When you're an adolescent and experiencing all different types of emotions, you start to connect with what the music says. The songs were never that deep, but a 12 year old can make them deep in their imagination. Okay, well I don't know if everyone did, but I did.
One of the random subplots of what makes Blink interesting musically - they have two singers who split songs. And it's not like they back each other up, they're alternating on different songs. Tom's got that whiny voice. Mark doesn't really sing, he just talks. It still works for both of them. Most bands only have one frontman on the music.
So Blink begat my love of music. It turned into an obsession over Green Day when American Idiot came out. Which lead to a Springsteen obsession that has settled down, but it still at obnoxiously high levels.
Blink 182 split in 2004. That was an upsetting time for me. I remember hearing it on the Philly radio. Their self-titled album was a different sound, but I still was into it. I'm not sure if I was blinded by Blink or what.
It's been an interesting eight years since Blink's last album. They went their separate musically. Formed two different bands. Tom produced three albums with Angels and Airwaves. Mark and Travis made +44, which felt like Blink incarnate, just without Tom's whiny voice - except for the song about how much they can't stand Tom and don't want to be friends with him. Mark went on to produce for other bands and do other behind-the-scenes music work. Travis was working on becoming a quasi hip-hop drummer/solo artist/rap sidekick.
The music they made felt like the trajectory of the self titled album - less stupid catchy hooks and toilet humor and more serious songs about whatever. Some of the music was good. Some was too much - mainly Tom's stuff, as he was aiming to achieve, what he called, "the best rock album ever." It was too much. Too heavy. It wasn't going to carry. I don't know if his ego got the best of him or what went wrong, but he talked too much game about an album that was good, but not epic.
So with all of that background, I've acquired Blink's new album, due out next Tuesday. I've been listening to it for the past few days - and I saw them live in Camden as well. The album, again, is the natural progression of their music. It feels like they've taken the best of their solo experiences and worked together to express themselves. It's got Tom's big guitar riffs and Travis' quick beats, all working together.
The lyrics reflect some of the more serious things that they've had happen to them. They aren't stupid 20 somethings getting drunk, making fart jokes, and screwing around. They're older now. They have families. Travis almost lost his life in a plane accident with DJ AM. Then DJ AM died (random sidenote - I was at the Saratoga show when DJ AM died, Blink cancelled the show. Weezer put on a great show, but it wasn't the same.)
I honestly don't know if the album is great or not. I like it. I think I might be blinded by the idea of Blink-182 being back, writing a new album, etc. The little kid in my loves it. Makes me want to go back to being 13 when it was cool to have emo AIM away messages about how much I can't stand girls. Well, not really, but sort of. You know what I mean. Oh, you don't? That's awkward.
The new album won't win any awards. It won't go down in history. But I'll be listening to it for a while. I'm not sure at what point I grow up. Am I still listening to this when I have kids? Who knows. In the meantime, I'm enjoying the feeling from the album, and it's bringing me back to my high school days - who doesn't want to relive that feeling again?
What's my age again?
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