Blink Returns to Your Neighborhood After Midnight

        To say people had high expectations for this album would be a huge understatement. As a big fan of Blink’s younger albums, my expectations were up there with most everyone else’s. So as you would imagine when I first put in the album “Neighborhoods” for a listen through I was surprised at the difference in sound from “Blink-182.” It’s not a bad difference but you can definitely hear a new maturity in this album that start back in the days of “Take Off Your Pants and Jacket” and slowly evolved since their self-titled album. The lead off track Ghost on the Dance Floor starts the album off with a nice drum beat slowing bringing up the guitar with a classic Blink sound to it. I must admit the first time I heard this album I was quite disappointed with the quality of the songs feeling they really weren’t the Blink-182 I had grown up with listening to. Sadly this is true, Blink is no longer what it used to be in regards to what they play but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Evolution is a simple part of every band and shows a progression from a simplest artist to a musical genius.
        The first single from the album “Up All Night” is a great introduction to the album itself as it shows of the power of Blink is still there but also adds a lot to how different this music is from older Blink by subtle things such as the vocals on the pre-chorus have an effect very reminiscence of Angels and Airwaves along with little space effect noises running throughout the song. The second single from the album is entitled, “Hearts All Gone” which someone mentioned to had a drum beat similar to a Rise Against song which is a great way to put it though I think a more accurate comparison is +44’s “Lycanthrope” mixed with “When Your Heart Stops Beating” which isn’t a bad thing it’s a song type Mark Hoppus does well but to get the full range of the song the Interlude must be given a listen to as it paints a musical picture that the lyrics capitalize on. The weakest song on the album has got to be “Fighting The Gravity” which is not a terrible song it just seems to drag and get caught up in a problem that some +44 songs had. It relies too heavily on creating space and dissonance in the vocals and music that can often make it seems a bit clustered.
     Besides that, this whole album is very well put together which should help re-solidify Blink-182 in the music mainstream. From songs such as “After Midnight” to “Love Is Dangerous” this whole album shows off that Blink-182 can still write just as well as they used to and compose a song that is not only pleasing for the ear but can also create an experience for the listener through the lyrical content and dynamics of the instruments.
             After all is said and done, I give Blink-182’s much anticipated “Neighborhoods” an 8 out of 10.

Songs To Download:
“Up All Night”

“After Midnight”
“Hearts All Gone”
Songs To Look Up:
“Snake Charmer”
“Kaleidoscope”
“Love Is Dangerous”
“Hearts All Gone Interlude”
Songs To Avoid:
“Fighting Gravity”

An Introduction To Blink 182

I had originally meant for the to be apart of the review but unfortunately there is just so much information it needs to be it's own post seperate from the review.

        Back in February 1994, 3 boys from California released their first album Cheshire Cat under the name of Blink. Shortly afterwards, they were threatened with legal actions by an Irish pop band of the same name which caused them to change their name to Blink-182. The band saw an increase in listeners and broke through to mainstream success with their single “Dammit” from the 1997 album “Dude Ranch.” Though mainstream success was great for the band it did see some inner disputes between band members which eventually led to the replacement of the drummer Scott Raynor mid tour in 1998. His replacement was a 22 year old from the supporting act for the tour The Aquabats who was eventually asked to become the bands full time drummer which he graciously accepted. This was the forming of the Blink-182 todays culture knows and loves with Tom Delonge on guitar and vocals, Mark Hoppus on bass guitar and vocals, and finally Travis Barker on Drums.
                Back in the studio in 1999 the band recorded their first hugely successful album “Enema of the State” which saw huge success and positive critical reception, launching Blink-182 into music legends ushering in a pop­-punk mainstream movement. Blink-182 released 2 more albums after this, “Take Off Your Pants and Jacket” which had some of their biggest hits to date, and the self-titled “Blink-182” both of which received positive reviews and huge mainstream success. Unfortunately like most good things Blink-182 too had to come to an end because on February 22, they announced an indefinite hiatus seemingly closing the book on their musical career.
                As years went by Mark Hoppus made a new band named +44 which released an album titled “When Your Heart Stops Beating” with Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker. On the opposite end Tom Delonge started a band named Angels and Airwaves which saw huge mainstream success with its brand of alternative rock and mature themes. With the success of all the members broken up fans wondered if Blink would ever get back together. Eventually, fans got their wish of seeing a Blink-182 reunion but only after a horrible plan crash with Travis Barker and DJ Am which took the lives of four people. This all culminated to the band announcing their reunion in February 2009 at the 51^st Grammy Awards Ceremony which would consist of a European tour in summer 2010. With all the talks of the band touring and playing again fans wondered what the band would have in store for new music which is a question that fans would not be able to find out about until September 2011 when the sixth Blink-182 album “Neighborhoods” was released.

The Intro

        What to write, what to write... Aren't introductions just the hardest things to write? No matter how perfect it is, you find yourself second guessing it for the remainder of your writing. This is because, to be honest intros are the most important part of a type of writing as it expresses to the reader not only your writing style but also what the page they are on is about.
        Well, welcome to R0CK D3C0D3D, the blog where we review rock music starting anywhere from the 80's to today. Of course, this includes (but is not limited to); Albums, Singles, EP's, B-Sides, Demos, and Music Videos. I'm very excited to do this and have been imagining writing this blog for some time now. I am Th3 D3C0D3R and I'll be consistently updating this blog with reviews of some of the best and worst rock has to offer. Look out for the review of "Neighborhoods," by Blink 182 in the coming days.