Blink 182's "Up All Night"

If you are not familiar with Blink 182 other than 3 guys who put out songs in the late 90's and early 2000's about balls, wieners, and inappropriate jokes about your mom; than they definitely have been warranted a second look.

Recently the band put out a new single entitled "Up All Night" after an eight year hiatus consisting of feuding band members, fighting spouses, and a few side projects. (Mark Hoppus & Travis Barker's +44, an electronic tinged "Hoppus-song heavy" collaboration; Tom DeLonge's stadium rock Angels and Airwaves, as well as individual work such as successful producing careers from both Barker & Hoppus. The later producing records from Motion City Soundtrack most notably, and Barker remixing a slew of hip-hop songs.)

Understandably, many are very skeptical as to what a new Blink song will "sound like" given these many and varying paths each have chosen to take. However, it is also important to remind ourselves of the band's last effort, (Blink 182, 2003) which showed us that these guys do have the talent & the dedication to put out a legit rock record that still managed to keep you singing along; sans dick jokes.

All that being said, I found myself about as giddy as a 13 year old girl before a Justin Bieber concert, anxiously checking my phone for updates last Thursday night as to when I could listen to a new effort from the band.

After an initial listen, and just getting my boyish anxiousness out of the way; it was important to critique the song for what it was: a Blink 182 song. Markedly poppy, simple, but fuck! Fun to listen too.

Lyrics/Melody:

For something that's been hyped up for so long, I was kind of disappointed that the lyrics seem hastily put together and at some points fail to flow into each other. It gives the impression that Hoppus & Delonge are fighting for lead vocals on the song, with Delonge pushing himself to the front by stomping on Hoppus's last line in the verses to start the pre-choruses. Beside that fact the harmonies in the chorus are pretty cool and they flow nicely. The lyrics and melody are catchy and fun, but with pretty dark lyrics and a 'glass half-empty' mentality.

Song Structure/Production:

It seems like they are trying to be different just for the hell of it. Many of the parts are based in groups of 3's and 5's, (where a typical pop song would be 2's and 4's). This is great though. I like the fact that it's just a bit different and not everyone is going to pick up on that fact. The chord structures are of typical Blink 182 nature, employing the traditional "box" chord structure that makes a lot of pop-punk bands sound like they do. The verse's guitar hangs on the root while the bass plays along the structure, the chorus unites the guitar and bass (with a little lead guitar riff buried in the corner) , and the intro/outro riff is interesting but still plays along the same structure. Simple. But simple is right, if it isn't broken don't fix it; just make it a little more interesting and fun for us music geeks out there.

Mixing:

This the thing that both made me really happy, but also I was most skeptical about. It is ambitious and different. The thing that I noticed the most is that each band member seems to make themselves sound how they want, and not what would be a cohesive sound for the band. The pre-chorus lyrics (Delonge) are swimming in reverb while the rest of the song stays quite dry in comparison, the drums are very biting and are pretty much a copy/paste of what the drums sound like on Barker's solo album; which I am not a fan of. There is also some synth program or pad that plays through the intro/outro and choruses that is borderline annoying and very unnecessary. Also, the bass pattern in the verses does not play to the drums?! Come on. The thing I am the biggest fan of is Hoppus's conservative approach to his singing and bass playing (minus the verse pattern) in mixing and production that still lets us know that there is a sane ear left in Blink 182.

All in All Critique:

I think that this is a great song at face value. It is a simple, catchy, and more mature version of Blink 182 that I am very excited to see and hear more of. It shows every single part of where the band has been individually and as a whole, showcasing important values the members have learned through working in other projects. I've heard things like "it sounds too much like Angels and Airwaves/+44/Boxcarracer, not enough/too much Mark/Tom. I think it sounds like a stronger and healthier Blink 182; which is right where they need to be. Their new album "Neighborhoods" drops on September 27th, and I am super excited to hear what this band has been up too.

So check this song out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkoCkva-rBc

It's all about knowing your limits

We can all apply this term to many, many contexts of our lives. However, in the music world, how many theoretical drinks are too many?

I am sitting here at my desk trying to apply this analogy to some of my favorite groups of bands. The stipulation being: a band that broke up and formed two equally as successful groups that have separate; and sometimes equal purposes.

(*Disclaimer* since this is my blog, I am not going to be objective in my statements. This is a strictly opinionated point of view. I like both bands equally in the end.)

I am of course talking about the timeless controversy of The Mars Volta V. Sparta. Both bands formed from the remnants of the iconic post-hardcore group At The Drive In, which achieved mild success in the early 2000's with the song "One-Armed Scissor".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NYbojdoAQE

Between two guitarists' Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Jim Ward's duality of pop sensibility (Ward), and progressive/ambient (Rodriguez-Lopez) influences, the group maintained an incredible balance of power throughout their short but eventful career. The result of this unstable combination proved to be one that was incredibly tasty, but you wouldn't be able to remember past your first sip. (tacky alcohol related reference).

The unstable combination proved true when the band split in 2001, leaving fans waiting for what would come next. Singer Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez went on to form progressive rock band The Mars Volta, with a promising first effort entitled "De-Loused in the Comatorium" (2003) which was an amazing and understandable departure from ATDI's post-hardcore sound into a more mature, yet slightly less coherent sound that still aimed to please even the most skeptical Drive-In fan. HOWEVER, after this first record, one can clearly see why the departure occurred. With 2004's Frances the Mute, we are shown the ten minute noodling and unnecessary complexities that undoubtedly split the band up in the first place. The Mars Volta is without a doubt one of the most ambitious groups I've heard, but one that is ridiculously complex for no reason. To cite the alcohol references I mentioned earlier, The Mars Volta clearly "had to many". We get it. You're a good guitar player, you understand how your instrument works. Now let's just make it sound like something other than a beached whale.

On the other hand, we have Jim Ward (guitar/vocals); as well as Tony Haijar (drums) went on to form the alternative rock band Sparta. Sparta started off with a much quieter and well planned out start with Wiretap Scars (2002). We can clearly see where the melody came from in ATDI with this release. However, with the release of Porcelain (2004) the band truly found their ground as a more melodic, as well as more accessible effort from ATDI alums.

In my opinion, "Porcelain" is how a record should sound. Everything about it is, for lack of a better word, beautiful. There are no soft spots, slow points, or parts where one would question where the band came from or where they were going. It's hard to say anything bad about this record.

Even better in my eyes, is that the band decided to call it quits after their third record Threes (2006) to pursue other projects. How awesome is this? In complete contrast to The Mars Volta, they did not and are not bleeding and beating a dead horse by continuing something that is not permanent and/or is losing momentum. They quit while they were strong and dignified. They accomplished something admirable by putting out three great records that people liked and were full of great songs.

So in the end, what I have to offer is that bands are full of duality; and that is often what makes great music, both pre and post breakup. Both groups have put out good efforts, and some prove to be a bit more successful in any perception. It's important to have that pop sensibility, as well as that exploration that sends things close to the edge of coherence.