OFFICIALLY IN ITS COMEBACK ERA, BLINK-182 KICKED OFF THE TEXAS RUN OF ITS WORLD TOUR IN DALLAS.
Blink-182 played a retrospective of songs from its catalog spanning 20+ years, including all the favorites from Enema of the State (’99) and The Mark, Tom and Travis Show (2000) to Take Off Your Pants and Jacket (’01) and its 2003 self-titled album.
The trio also performed newer music from later albums like Neighborhoods and California, as well as its latest single “Edging,” which was released in October following the announcement of the band’s 2023-24 world tour.
Behind the new single and the tour are three longtime bandmates and friends who haven’t been in the studio or on the road together in 10 years: After the band announced its initial hiatus, drummer Travis Barker and bassist Mark Hoppus continued working in music, while guitarist/vocalist Tom DeLonge became a renowned UFOlogist. (His organization was partially responsible for the Pentagon declassifying UFO videos in 2020.)
All that to say, the alien thing was a theme in the show. “Dammit, Tom was right about aliens,” Hoppus joked before they went into “Aliens Exist.”
The high-energy songs, catchy melodies, and goofy banter between Hoppus and DeLonge (not to mention watching Barker play drums) reminded us why we fell in love with the band in the first place, and reminded us that life is too short to take things too seriously.
Hoppus credited his bandmates being there for him during his battle with stage IV cancer as one of the reasons he’s still alive today. It was heartwarming to see the band’s chemistry so palpable on stage.
Earlier this year, blink-182 replaced Frank Ocean as the headliner for Coachella’s second weekend, and gave a performance media and fans couldn’t stop raving about, and now I see why. I jumped, I danced, and even teared up a little during “Adam’s Song.”
The epic encore (“What’s My Age Again,” “First Date,” “All the Small Things”) culminated with a fireworks finale and a “Dammit” featuring a Taylor Swift tease.
Also during the encore was a marriage proposal in the pit (they said yes, btw).
The final song marked a full-circle moment, considering it came out more than 25 years ago and was their first hit.
As the lyric from the song goes—“well, I guess this is growing up.”
For more Lone Sound coverage, read about Dallas guitarist Justin Lyons, who performed with blink-182 in 2019 and has since become the guitarist for Machine Gun Kelly.
Check out official tour dates and see the show in Austin July 7 or Houston on July 8.
See all the photos from the Blink-182 show below. (All photos ©Andrew Sherman)
