Blink-182 - California (Album Review)

I'm not the only person in the world that puts Blink-182 on a pedestal as an all time favorite band. It's pretty common among fans of the pop/punk genre. Scott Raynor was still in the band when I first started listening to Blink-182. For me, like a lot of people in my age range, the band really took off with their big breakout album Enema Of The State. The band then released two more really good career defining albums before a break-up. Then they returned with Neighborhoods, which I thought was a pretty good album after all things considered (the band's strained relationship, recording the album in different studios, etc...). The strain continued on Dogs Eating Dogs and then after a couple years of promising an album and not following through the words: Tom.Is.Out were plastered all over the Internet in reference to an e-mail Mark and Travis had received from Tom DeLonge's manager. Mark and Travis basically said Tom was the reason fans didn't have new Blink music and he had quit Blink. Tom fired back saying he didn't quit and things were complicated. I'm kind of paraphrasing, but you get the picture - inner band turmoil led to Tom being out of Blink-182 indefinitely, for at least the time being. So enter a new phase into the life of this band as Alkaline Trio front-man Matt Skiba was brought on for shows and eventually became the guitarist and co-singer for the band on their new album California.

*Before I start this review I want to note. I understand some fans are upset that Tom is not on this album. I understand that. I appreciate DeLonge for the many great Blink songs he has written over the years. I'm taking the time to write this little paragraph because I wanted to give him a proper appreciation for the years of songs shout out before the review.

On with the review...

California is Blink-182 3.0 (don't forget the Scott Raynor era!). DeLonge is gone and his absence means that his high pitched vocal presence or any similarity to it is not on this album. Instead you get Skiba who at times is eerily similar to Hoppus vocally ("Bored To Death") and at times sticks out a lot more reminding me of how he sounds on Alkaline Trio records ("No Future"). His vocal ability on the album and what he brings to it is really impressive. He brings a freshness to the sound that helps make California its own unique beast. He really does feel like a great fit on this album. Throughout California's sixteen tracks I found myself very impressed with his performance.

The album's production handled by John Feldmann (5 Seconds Of Summer, Good Charlotte, All Time Low) gives the band's sound a nice face lift for 2016 and provides a very vibrant, current sounding production style for the band. It's exactly the production I thought this band needed for this album. It sounds absolutely fantastic production wise and is far better than on Neighborhoods. The songwriting is quite good. It's also important to note that Feldmann is also credited as a main songwriter on the album along with the band. His influence can definitely be heard on a few tracks. Overall the songwriting has elements of what you've always loved about Blink-182 melding sounds from all their previous albums into an insanely pleasing sound. They also take time to experiment around with new sounds "Los Angeles" sounds slightly experimental with buzzing guitar riffs and trade-off vocals. Musically the song might feel at home on one of the newer Fall Out Boy albums. It's also a nice showcase of how Skiba's vocals add a really interesting new texture to the music on this album. "Sober" is actually a collaboration with Patrick Stump (Fall Out Boy) and while that song doesn't remind me of Fall Out Boy as much as "Los Angeles" it is a very good pop/punk song and I like the lyrics a lot.

"Home Is Such A Lonely Place" is an instance where Feldmann's production helps the band find a more current sound. I wouldn't be hard pressed to find a similar song on a new All Time Low album. The opening vocals from Hoppus on "Cynical" start the album off strongly and it kicks off in rip roaring pop/punk fashion with some stellar Travis Barker drumming. It's off to the races from that point with tons of catchy sing-a-long-able songs that just beg to get stuck in your head. "No Future" is another catchy pop/punk tune that features the classic Blink staple the "na-na's". You get a lot of na-na's and woah's throughout the album. I've heard some people criticize that about the album. I actually think they fit more times than they don't and I come out really enjoying them.

The intro to "She's Out Of Her Mind" really reminds me of Enema Of The State. I can easily see this one being a big fan favorite. It is easily one of my favorite tracks on the album. It has a killer chorus and it's super catchy. I really like the lyrics. I love the throwback lyric to Bauhaus! It's a Skiba influenced lyric through and through. "Kings Of The Weekend" also screams to be a single and features a guitar riff that would have fit nicely on the Untitled album. It's such a catchy song and features a really good chorus that I like a lot. The title track, "California", features a co-write with Martin Johnson (Boys Like Girls) and it's a great, whimsical summer song. It's definitely the ode to California and would have been the perfect closer for the album. However, the short one-liner joke track "Brohemian Rhapsody" closes the album. In all truth, it isn't the world's best closer, but the guitar riff rips and feels like vintage Dude Ranch era Blink. I actually would have preferred them save the riff for a full song later on down the road.

The band didn't play around with this album. Overall this isn't some throwback album to the glory days and there isn't really a lazy song on this release, in my opinion. Yeah, the band does have similar sounds from those eras but I think that's because Blink is going to sound like Blink. I think the album is well crafted, well executed, and it really had to be, didn't it? This new line-up was a big gamble for Hoppus and Barker. They gambled big and they won big. For me this is a fantastic album that I think will no doubt please many fans and I can see some of these songs going down in history as some of the great Blink-182 songs. It's easily the most well crafted, complete sounding project from Blink-182 in over a decade, since the original hiatus. It's nice not to have to make excuses or over embellish because you want to like something. The band delivered. It's an arrow in a bullseye or if you prefer basketball metaphors it's a slam dunk in the hoop. After multiple listens I can't help but think that they truly delivered everything I wanted and more. This Blink-182 is different. I accept that and look forward to the future. A few listens of this album and I know they needed to be different. This is an A+ album for me and I couldn't be happier about it. I would highly recommend it. I think this will easily make my top 10 this year. It's just that good!