Blink-182- ‘Neighborhoods’ (Deluxe Edition) (26/09/2011- GDC/Interscope)

      As the world’s biggest pop punk band, Blink-182’s sixth ‘comeback’ album ‘Neighborhoods’ was highly anticipated my fans the world over. The band was formed in 1992 in and have sold twenty seven million singles worldwide to date. The band consists of vocalist and bass guitarist Mark Hoppus, vocalist and guitarist Mark DeLonge and completed by champion drummer Travis Barker, who was not part of the line up until 1998. The threesome have inspired musicians the world over, including the likes of Busted and You Me At Six, despite their humour filled undercurrent and comedic stage banter. Blink-182 became notorious for their use of quirky toilet humour, which is often regarded as immature and therefore inappropriate for ‘serious’ musicians, as well as simplistic melodies and teen angst. In 2005 Blink-182 went on infinite hiatus to work on individual projects such as +44 and Angels & Airwaves.

     After performing for the very first time since 2004 at the 51^st Grammy Awards ceremony the band embarked on a reunion tour around North American with support from Weezer and Fall Out Boy. After a spectacular performance at 2010’s Reading and Leeds Festivals the completion of ‘Neighborhoods’ was delayed several times and the band stated that they would not tour until the completion of the album. The record begins with ‘Ghost On The Dancefloor’ which begins with a progressive drumming build up into a The Killers esque studio produced violin section. However, the general instrumentation is familiar but it is clear that DeLonge’s vocals have progressed thanks to his work with Angels & Airwaves. Yet his signature exaggerated American accent is still in session, as well as repetitive lyrics, ‘I saw your ghost tonight...’, but harmonies and the blending of elements is much more advance than previously produced by Blink-182.

'Neighborhoods' Artwork

     ‘Natives’ immidately picks up the tempo and illustrates the chirpy Blink-182 vibe that is yearned after by so many and found in back catalogue tracks such as ‘Everytime I Look For You’ (Take Off Your Pants And Jacket, 2001). It is obvious that the band and their producers have worked very hard to extract the best components of Blink-182 to create a mature yet loveable record suitable for their wide range of fans and live shows, ‘...maybe I’m better off dead.’ Third track ‘Up All Night’ was released as a single from 14^th July 2011 and it was a perfect choice for single sales because of how commercial and infectious it is ‘...and all these demons they keep me up all night’. The various tempo changes and epic Angels & Airwaves infected vocals merge very well, proving that the band’s hiatus actually improved their musical skill somewhat.

     The cleverly light drumming and punchy guitaring that open ‘After Midnight’, if nothing depict that Blink-182 have aimed to compose a record made up of explorative songwriting, and ‘Snake Charmer’ proves what unusual sound effects can be added to rock songs without tarnishing them. ‘Heart’s All Gone’, which flows the ‘Heart’s All Gone Interlude’ illustrates the incredible skill that lies with Travis Barker and his swift drumming speeds. It can often be difficult to write a captivating chorus at speed, but it is something that Blink-182 have always done well. Each track from ‘Neighborhoods’ has the potential to be played live and receive a rapturous reaction from the crowd. ‘Wishing Well’ and ‘Kaleidoscope’ reflect the fact that all three band members worked on producing ‘Neighborhoods’ because of how varied they are, having said that ‘Wishing Well’ has a rather similar sound to Angels & Airwaves and the latter to +44.


     Musically speaking, this is Blink-182’s peak which must be why release was delayed so much. Tenth track ‘This Is Home’ is the conventional ‘welcome back’ to older fans and is very sentimental lyrically, ‘Do you wanna let go, ‘cause this is home...’. But the song is far from mind-blowing, although that has never been what Blink-182 are about. Interestingly named ‘MH 14.18.2011’ is noted as the date when the band cancelled their main reunion tour, and expresses what has come from that cancellation, ‘...the worst is yet to come.’ It could have easily been featured on an older album due to its innocent sound and optimistic essence. The chorus is catchier than the common cold but cannot account for the loss that fans experienced with the postponed gigs, which gives the band no right to preach, ‘Stop living in the shadow of a helicopter!’.

Blink-182 reunited (2011)

     ‘Love Is Dangerous’ portrays once again how heavily influenced the record is by Angels & Airwaves but the shared vocals prove that Blink-182 intended to remain just that. It has a very progressive rock tone to it and the wonderfully instrumental ending contradicts the somewhat immature theme. Penultimate track ‘Fighting The Gravity’ has an ominous introduction due to the input of the bass and builds into light speed drumming unique to Travis Barker. It is quite a dark track for the band and conveys their various capabilities with regards to songwriting to create certain emotions through themes. ‘Even If She Falls’ is the perfect rock song to conclude ‘Neighborhoods’ as it reverts back to Blink-182’s young boys’ perceptions of life and love, through magical melodies and simplistic lyrics, ‘there she was like a starry night...’

     

     Blink-182 have been battle-scarred and resurrected into more mature and frankly better musicians, but their undercurrents remain to be relationships, hardships in life and occasional light humour. Despite personal challenges and commitments, all three members have come together to create a very good, classic pop punk record.

4/5

We Stand Victorious- Forever Down But Never Out EP (03/08/2011)

     We Stand Victorious are ‘good friends’ from Leeds and Wakefield that came together to play similar music to their own tastes, such as Deaf Havana and Save Your Breath. Although they do not claim to be ‘awesome musicians’ they have been playing for a year and a half and write songs documenting aspects of their own lives. This, their very first EP, ‘Forever Down But Never Out’ was recorded in Stockport and produced by Mike Bennet who was previously worked with The Ocean Between Us and Empires Fade.

     The EP begins with a self explanatory track labelled ‘Intro’, which lasts just one minute and sixteen seconds, is simply a taster of what is yet to come from the rest of the EP. It is a very pop punk, Blink-182 esque introduction, with a light guitar riff that melts into drums and a burst of screamo and gang vocals, creating a good opening to any live show. Particularly when second track ‘Drop Out’ commences, you can hear the heavy Deaf Havana influences, but the boys have done rather well to construct a punchy pop vibe without being limp or God forbid conventional. Vocals are very American influenced but blend very well with other instrumentation. Their songwriting is slightly unusual, but for some reason in this track, the screamo inputs do not quite work.

We Stand Victorious

     We Stand Victorious have done remarkably well to not come across as too ‘try hard’ or simply pinching the best parts from professional bands. Yet by ‘What’s So Great About It?’ the long track introductions have become somewhat tedious and the screamo aspects seem unnecessary as the drums and guitars make the sound heavy enough. ‘Can I Interest You In A Nightcap? No Thank You, I Don’t Wear Them’ is not only a horrendously long song name, putting the likes of Fall Out Boy to shame, but is the most pitifully disappointing joke to be read in a long time. It momentarily begins with a My Chemical Romance This Is How I Disappear (The Black Parade, 2006) symbol based drum beat, which is soon tarnished by gang and screamo vocals. However, the tempo changes are very abrupt yet merge well. Lyrically, We Stand Victorious are straightforward, which makes them come across as immature musicians, ‘how much can we take and how long until we break?’. If anything it is a shame because the potential through the band’s instrumentation is positive.

     ‘Rhubard City’ is weak and weedy and if anything, makes you question if they are any good components that make up pop punk as a genre. But a minute and a half into the track, Deaf Havana ‘inspirations’ come back into play, constructing the only half decent few seconds of the song. Final track ‘When You’re made Out Of Lego (It’s Hip To Be Square)’ is yet another pitiful comedic and fragile musical attempt.

 It is clear to see that the best aspects of We Stand Victorious’ musical creations are those borrowed from other bands, including Josh Franceshi’s motto ‘Down But Not Out’ for their EP title, which is a slap in the face for pop punk fans. At times, however there are glimmers of their own personalities and general inputs that come into play. The best thing for this band to do would be continue writing considering music you love without producing drained and dreary versions of substantial songs already successfully released.

3/5