Grade: B
The fanbase was hungry, and Blink-182 knew it.
In a year inundated with artists progressively changing styles to entertain their audiences, Blink-182 released music that took us back to 1995, and nobody has a problem with it.
The band didn’t need to be anything different than what it already was, and in the group’s newest album, "California," its seventh album, it did its best to maintain its original pop punk style from the '90s, even though it lost trademark lead singer Tom DeLonge.
Travis Barker continued to thrash percussion — and by “thrash” I mean beat the heart of every 20-something pop punk fan — and Mark Hoppus screamed lyrics into the mic like a frustrated high school kid, along with newest addition Matt Skiba.
That’s not to say DeLonge’s presence wasn’t missed. Hoppus didn’t try to be DeLonge because let’s face it, no one can replicate those vocal cords, and Skiba basically added more layer to the background. Needless to say, the vocals fell a little flat, and with Barker trying to make up for the missing piece, it often led to the group sounding like two separate entities.
The most impressive aspect about the album was how Blink’s style seems perennial in paralleled songs between "California" and previous albums despite the huge loss of a lead singer.
“Home Is Such A Lonely Place” has attributes similar to 2003's “I Miss You,” while “Sober” sounds similar to 1997’s “Dammit.”
A new generation of kids across the nation now have more material to scream when they’re grounded for sneaking out of the house.
Minus “Los Angeles,” the album is full of anthems that reach back to top-selling albums of 2001 and 2003, including arguably the group’s top-five single “Bored To Death.”
The headlining single separates itself from the rest of the album with its deep language such as “Rescuing a tiger from a tree / The pictures in her head are always dreaming / Each of them means everything to me.” Its ultimate catchiness also keeps the audience hitting repeat.
Though the vocals fall quite short, Blink-182 once again took lines that are simple in writing but hit hard when put into their songs. “Life is too short to last long” from “Bored to Death” is the best example of simple but strong lyrics.
Though the youthful edge of the group that led every pop punk group like All Time Low and Sum 41 was lost, there certainly were highs that many 40-something rock bands don’t reproduce, and that’s why "California" is such an impressive album and a breath of fresh air — even if that air is from an era that featured slap bracelets and Tamagotchis.
trlehman@indiana.edu | @TaylorRLehman
