Blink-182 Talk Deluxe ‘California’ and More • Page 2

Whenever I listen to the CD I end up skipping the last 30 seconds of most songs. The extra chorus drags the songs for me.

 

That's cool. California was great at first but definitely feels a bit thin. I don't think more songs will make it any better. At this point, just drop the whole deluxe/double album thing and just announce a new album as a follow up.

 

I agree. I wanted to like it so bad when it finally came out. And I loved it for maybe the first 2 weeks. After that, the veil kind of fell away and I realized there were maybe 3-4 truly good, standout tracks surrounded by a bunch of filler. I was fully prepared to give this album all the praise and was hoping it would highlight Neighborhoods flaws. California did the exact opposite for me. It made Neighborhoods even stronger. Sure, Neighborhoods has its problems, but it definitely has a very cohesive sound throughout. Sure, you can tell they wrote and recorded 90% of the album separately, and yeah, a few of the songs sound like they were just thrown together in the studio, but most of the record definitely show signs serious thought, time, and work. California sounds like they booked 2 weeks in a studio, hit record, and released the first 14 songs they wrote.

Now that they've gotten California out of their system, I really was looking forward to whatever they did next.

 

Yeah the show was definitely a good time, but I would agree that there was a lack of intimacy. Understandable considering you're easing a new member into a beloved band with a long-standing line-up, but there was definitely a lack of rapport that you'd expect between Mark and Tom. Matt held his own, great performance, but Mark has definitely taken the helm in terms of interacting with the audience and his bandmates.

 

I personally enjoyed Neighbourhoods quite a bit! I agree that it sounds cohesive, and, despite being scattered and disjointed at times, for the most part you can tell that the band took their time crafting their respective parts. California was described as being more impulsively written and put together with dozens and dozens of songs recorded, which I think was a good exercise for the band rather than spending months over-thinking the recording of a few songs and letting the line-up shift loom over them. For what it is, I enjoy California, it has some standout tracks (like you said) and is good for a fun listen, but I hope they approach their next release differently.

 

California was absolutely the blink album I've revisited the least. Did nothing for me at all.

But I'm also much older now than I was when I worshipped blink. So that may be it too. This is going to sound WAY MORE OFFENSIVE/REDUCTIONIST than I mean it to, but California sounded like songs a local pop punk band would write in high school.

 

Same. I get it. I've casually played in bands for almost half my life. I understand how fun and exciting that "honeymoon" phase is, writing and recording anything and everything. Working with people like that takes time and is a learning process every single time. I hope they slow it down a bit for the next album and give the writing process some breathing room.

 

Pretty much nailed it. 15 years ago, the joke songs were my fucking life. Now, in my late 20's, I can't imagine being in my 40's and writing and singing the kind of immature songs that Blink still puts out.

 

Took a while for this album to grow on me but it eventually did, some of the songs are skippable but others will go down as some of my favorite Blink songs, I think San Diego is my favorite from the album. If I even enjoy half these new songs I'll be happy with it.

 

I'm a huge blink fan, and love their entire catalogue...for some reason, I have issue with the lyrics on California in a way that they don't seem to be written for themselves from their own life experiences, but for who they hope purchase the album. Too "salesy" for me, if that makes sense. I get that it's simple 3-chord pop punk intended to sell millions of records, but substance is never a bad thing, and plenty of other bands have done it including Blink themselves on their self titled record.

 

Thats one thing that bugged me too, they have lots to write about (families, the breakup, the plane crash)

 

I remember when the album came out in the Summer, everyone was so stoked on it and saying how great it was. 6 months later, it really hasn't held up, for me at least. Sure there are some solid tracks here but its not an album I have much interested in revisiting. I think the "blink sound" as we have come to know is likely mostly (not entirely) from Tom's ideas. That being said, I have never been a really big A&A fan so I think what made Blink work so well was the blending of ideas from Tom and Mark. They don't seem to make music as enjoyable when not together IMO

 

I'm looking forward to dissecting the track list and making my own new version of California with a slew of new songs to pick and choose from.

I hope the new songs are great.

 

I am just very confused by most of the comments in here. What I am gathering is most people are annoyed that 14 new tracks will be added to California, but if they would just have a new 14 track album they would be okay with it?

 

People have been shitting on California for being lyrically insincere and immature, and I think that's an unfair limited view on these lyrics. Yeah there's songs that mention teenagers and youth, but rather than a lot of their past lyrics and messages, California is looking at them in hindsight. Teenage Satellites is more about an adult looking back at their experience of a teenager not attempting to mimic it. Could you say Kings of the Weekend is about kids rejoicing for the weekend? Maybe, but that's true for people of all ages. You're acting like these experiences stop happening once you're a kid and become an adult, while by and large these things remain mostly the same.

Home Is Such A Lonely Place is about Mark's son and San Diego is about Tom and their complex past. Songs like No Future and Cynical touch on Mark's doubts about his legacy and whether he still has anything left to write about. I mean Blink's lyrics haven't ever been lyrically that deep and thought provoking but it's not like these are just completely shallow meaningless pop songs.

They've touched on the plane crash briefly before on Neighborhoods, but Travis doesn't write the lyrics and perhaps wouldn't even feel comfortable having songs about it on the record. I'm not gonna give someone shit for not writing about their near death experience and the traumatic aftereffects of it.

 

lol California got nominated for a Grammy? What a joke.

 

I'd like to see them write another album sounding more like the "Dogs Eating Dogs" EP. I feel it had a lot of potential (& was underrated) to take the band to even greater realms sonically. Songs like "Pretty Little Girl", "Disaster", "Boxing Day" were highlights to me & I think if they wrote a full album in this vein it'd be pretty super. Not sure that would be doable without Tom being i think he had a lot of influence on it but one can dream!

That said, I thought "California" was a good summer album.

 

I hear ya, truly. I love 'Home is Such a Lonely Place' as it's a song I can relate to. San Diego as well. I'm not 'shitting' on Blink, but am speaking to my own opinion that some parts of it fell short. California is a good album, and just like I would analyze an NFL team by saying they've got great QB play, a great receiving corp, but the D Line needs some work...Lyrics on California are the D Line in the analogy. It has strong Choruses, great Drum Work (that I can't help but pretend I'm Travis Barker when listening) and really good production. I have listened to the album every month since it came out, and tend to skip some tracks, but overall think it fits right in with their body of work. I guess I need to be careful comparing lyrics between other bands I listen to and appreciate Blink for what they are.

 

Bored To Death was the only grabber for me. Matt killed it on that. I don't see any new tracks written in the same era that California was having too much of an impact on me. Nevertheless, I'll always be down to hear what Blink has to offer.

 

Loved California. San Diego, Sober, and Home is Such a Lonely place were my stand out favorites. Any word on when they're planning on releasing it yet?

 

If they pass the reins over to Matt a little more, I'll be so stoked.

 

Last I heard was around February/early March. Could be released right before the tour though.

 

Popularity contest, not a quality contest.

 

you honestly revisit neighborhoods more?

 

Neighborhoods is waaaayyy better