Blink-182

I blink-182 durante un'esibizione

I blink-182 (precedentemente noti semplicemente come blink) sono un gruppo musicale californiano punk, formato nel 1992 da Tom Delonge e Mark Hoppus. Insieme ai Green Day, sono considerati gli iniziatori della rivoluzione pop punk post-grunge.

Membri della band

Il primo batterista della band, Scott Raynor, lasciò il gruppo subito dopo l'uscita dell'album Dude Ranch. I motivi della sua uscita dal gruppo sono stati continuamente motivo di discussione, e molte ipotesi sono state avanzate, anche se in un'intervista Scott stesso dichiarò che Tom e i manager della band gli chiesero di risolvere i suoi problemi con l'alcool. Nonostante i suoi tentativi, Scott venne rimpiazzato da Travis Barker.

==Biografia==

I blink-182 sono composti da tre membri: Thomas (Tom) Matthew Delonge (chitarrista e cantante), Markus (Mark) Allan Hoppus (bassista e cantante) e Travis Landon Barker (batterista). The band is greatly regarded worldwide for their catchy punk-pop melodies as well as their satirical toilet humour. blink-182 are unusual amongst punk bands (even pop-punk bands) for playing uptempo songs in a major key, with prominent major-chord harmonies that are usually digitally mixed to provide a much "cleaner" sound than most other punk/rock recordings, which generally employ downtuned guitars, distortion and a ragged analogue mix to achieve the opposite effect. In a similar fashion, the lyrical content of their songs are humourous and often uplifting in contrast to the moody, introspective angst or angry political commentary often associated with other punk bands. These aspects of their music are so apparent, and so particular to the band that often a blink-182 song can be recognised by the opening guitar chord.

In 1992, when Mark moved to San Diego, California he was introduced to Tom whilst looking to start a band. Apparently both 'fell in love at first sight' as they shared many things in common. In order to make the band complete, they decided that they needed to look for a drummer. Tom discovered a kid named Scott Raynor at his school who just happened to play drums. Although Scott was a religious Metallica fan, he agreed to join the band. After considering a number of names (such as Duck Tape) the band agreed to call themselves just 'blink'. This would later have the numbers 182 added onto the end to avoid legal conflicts with a pre-existing Irish band named "blink" (see below).

Towards the end of 1993 blink released an EP known as Flyswatter. This demo was recorded using a boom box in Scott's bedroom, thus explaining the poor sound quality (if you can obtain a copy, you'll see how far the band has come since then). Before the end of the year, the band released yet another demo cassette known as Buddha. Around 1000 copies of this were produced by Cargo Filter Records. In early 1994, blink released their first full-length debut album, Cheshire Cat, released on Grilled Cheese Records. The album contained many new versions of songs that appeared on the Buddha demo.

Shortly after the release of Cheshire Cat, blink were threatened with legal action by a techno band in Ireland of the same name. In order to avoid a lengthy lawsuit, blink added the numbers 182 to the end of their name. Although there are rumours as to why these numbers were chosen, all band members have made it clear that they are totally random and do not represent "Mark's ideal weight", as one fan claimed.

Due to the pop punk boom of the 1990s (due to bands such as Green Day and The Offspring), blink-182 were signed onto record giants MCA. After moving to Encinitas, California, the band recorded the album Dude Ranch with producer Mark Trombino. The album was a hit as two singles ("Josie" and "Dammit") rose to the top of US airplay charts. Unfortunately, in 1998, a slight setback occurred amongst within the band. Scott, who had a serious drinking problem at the time, was apparently kicked out of the band and asked to go to rehab. Although some believe that he left blink-182 to go to college and earn his degree, it is still unclear as to what exactly happened. When Scott disappeared midway through a US tour, the band needed a drummer to fill in for him at a show. Travis Barker who was playing with the band The Aquabats, who blink-182 were on tour with, decided to play for them that night. After learning the entire blink-182 set in around 30 minutes and ripping through all the songs with ease, Mark and Tom decided that Travis was just the man the band needed and Scott was bid farewell.

1999 saw the release of the highly-anticipated album Enema Of The State. The CD was successful, but blink became very big in mainstream pop, MTV, and TRL due to the hit singles "What's My Age Again", "Adam's Song", and the memorable "All The Small Things". The sound on "Enema Of The State" was rooted in the same genre as earlier pop-punk bands such as NOFX, Green Day, and The Offspring, but it was more radio accessible and poppy with lyrics that more teenagers could relate to. blink lost most of their credibility among the punk scene, and many began to label them "poseurs" and "sellouts" as they began to gain "teenybopper" fans and shared airplay and popularity with *NSYNC, The Backstreet Boys, and many other "pop" artists.

2001 saw blink continue their reign as pop-punk kings, recording Take Off Your Pants & Jacket, which followed the same basic formulas as their smash "Enema Of The State". The band didn't gain back any credibility, but their success in the pop and rock world was still evident. In 2001, blink appeared on the cover of "CosmoGirl", and won a "Nickelodeon Kid's Choice Award". These two things made blink's punk cred decrease even further, but side projects from Tom Delonge and Travis Barker (The Transplants, Box Car Racer) saw their credibility rise ever so slowly.

2003 was the year that blink would gain back most of their respect. In 2002, bands such as Good Charlotte, New Found Glory, and Simple Plan began following the same route as blink, which was playing pop punk music while being successful on MTV and among pop listeners. This made people partially forget about blink-182's impact on the pop-punk, and focus on the bands popular at that time. During that time, blink-182 made their most credible record yet. Described as a self-meditation on romantic decay, their untitled 5th record featured the hit singles "Feeling This", "I Miss You", "Down" and the 80's-influenced "Always". Travis Barker has confirmed that the band left the album untitled (rather than eponymous) to represent a whole new blink. It showcased a style of music deeper than anything blink had ever done, and gained them more crediblity in modern rock while still getting play on pop stations and MTV. Critics have deemed their sound similar to that of The Police and U2, although members of the band claim they took most of their influence from The Cure, whose frontman Robert Smith appeared on "All of This." Listeners called the riffs heavier and the lyrics profound. A tour with No Doubt was very successful in the summer of 2004 as well. Following this move they decided to take a long anticipated gig to Ireland paying a visit to their once enemies, Blink. Rumors have it that the band will have a joint collaboration in the coming months.

Discografia

Flyswatter (1993)
2nd Demo (1993)
Buddha (1994)
Cheshire Cat (1995)
Dude Ranch (1997)
Enema of the State (1999)
The Mark, Tom, And Travis Show: The Enema Strikes Back (2000)
Take off Your Pants and Jacket (2001)
blink-182 (2003)

Blink-182

Indice

Membri della band

Discografia

Videoclip

DVD

Altri progetti paralleli dei membri della band

Compagnie controllate da membri della band

Collegamenti esterni