It had to happen eventually, the boys are back with a new album, their first in eight years! The fans have been rejoicing, pop-punk's heroes are back, and ready to show what they've learned during the hiatus.We have the immature Tom Delonge on guitar and vocals:
The self proclaimed 'handsome devil' of the group, Mark Hoppus, on bass and vocals:
And the tattooed wonder, Travis Barker on drums:
All coming back, mending their friendships, to bring you Blink-182:
I, with countless other people were excited for this album. I honestly didn't expect much, but I got more than I thought I would, but at the same time, not quite as good as some of their earlier work.. But who's complaining?The first thing you'll notice is that Tom's voice has changed due to surgery on his throat or something of the sort, it's a bit awkward to hear at first, with some people wondering "Why is he even trying?", but it really grows on you quickly in a way I didn't expect, sometimes you can't even tell it's changed. Of course, he does hit a few notes the wrong way during the album, but he's trying. Mark sounds pretty much exactly the same as he always has though, and is it just me, or did Travis get a little bit better at drumming?
If you're looking for material like from Enema of the State, or any of the other albums that aren't the self titled, there are a few throwbacks, but mostly this is like a continuation of the self titled in the way that it's a bit dark, emotional, and completely serious, even if the guys aren't.
The songs are actually pretty well done here, with there only being one I didn't really like, 'Love is Dangerous' because it reminded me too much of Angels and Airwaves, Tom's other band. That's another problem, while the songs are good, there seems to be a little bit too much Angels and Airwaves influence at times, where I'm just left thinking that if I wanted to listen to Angels and Airwaves, then I'd just listen to them and not Blink-182, but AVA (what is the V for in their official acronym anyway?) isn't really a band as much as it is an extension of Tom Delonge himself, so that's kinda to be expected.
I think the guys have even gotten a little bit more experimental than before, with the ending of 'Snake Charmer', and the song 'Fighting the Gravity' which are only on the deluxe version, I was actually pretty impressed with the change, and the interlude to 'Heart's All Gone', the interlude also unfortunately only found on the deluxe edition, is just awesome. There are some great songs to be found on the regular edition alone though, like 'Natives' and 'Kaleidoscope', it really makes me smile to hear Tom and Mark singing together again.
But that's another problem, Mark doesn't get nearly as much time on the album as Tom does. Don't get me wrong, I like Tom, but I've always been more of a fan of Mark, and even then, one of the biggest parts of Blink-182 is the fact that Tom and Mark are singing together in it.
Overall I really wanna give this a 7/10 overall. I don't think it's quite what some people were wanting, and some will argue it wasn't worth the wait, but I don't think it's bad by any means. It's sure to be a classic, and a grower.
Recommended tracks: Natives, Up All Night, Kaleidoscope
