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just got back from greenville and it was a blast. the best they’ve ever sounded and the greatest setlist yet. truly a fans dream across the board, from the not now drum solo to the medley of side projects (and by the way, they’re slowly getting into a full band rendition of WYHSB and it sounds gnarly). there’s not much else left to say — they play better, the bells and whistles are neat and add to the audience fun, and it’s a well structured set, especially the hit heavy closing. the operation is also truly astounding. i’ve been going to smaller gigs for a while mainly and seeing the absolutely massive swath of people and insane lines for merch really sends it home how much people 1) love this band 2) how much of a cash cow this reunion has been and 3) how they’re aging into classic rock tour forever territory. i’m curious to see where they go from here… a year or two break and then new record? few years break and then back at it? only time will tell, but one thing is certain: they’ve evolved into a stellar live act that will continue to create generations of fans. long live blink

Since Coachella happened the last two weekends I just want to bring back the glorious memory of Blink's surprise 2023 set. I'll never forget watching the live stream and suddenly seeing Mark and Tom waiting around backstage not realizing they were on camera, laughing it up and fucking around, looking like legitimate friends again. Then the show started with Family Reunion, Tom was trying again, and their entire performance was so goddamn good, beyond anything I ever hoped. They were really fucking back. What an incredible way to burst back into our lives. I feel like something "culturally" shifted that day in a way that is super rare, and absolutely propelled the new era in such a rad way. So many people outside of Blink fandom were SOOO happy they were back, it seemed like people were almost surprised to realize they loved Blink and it felt ok to admit it after that show haha.

thank the barnes and noble gods for giving me the experience of buying this book a week early. fahrenheit 182 is a standard rock bio to some degree — it hits the highs and lows, enough for fans and casual readers to enjoy in equal measure. the bulk of the book focuses on the band at the peak of post-Y2K millennial fame, which is both to be expected — it’s all he ever wanted — but it means the second half of the book can feel like diminishing returns, in a way that mirrors the band’s career. that means the skiba era gets the shaft, a dick joke i hope we can all appreciate. the way the book is broken up into very short chapters surprisingly serves it well, giving mark spaces to relish in fun anecdotes and stories, some of which he’s told before and many that are newly public. much like the band name “blink” was imagined as a fast action noun, mark initially bounces from memory to memory rapidly in a way that might leave some readers overloaded, like a sugary soda or an ADD gen-Xer flipping cable channels. but it’s in wise service of the point that his life breaks with his parents’ divorce… a trauma that refuses to heal, and manifests itself through his story. from there, mark dives deeper, despite the conversational tone. to this end, it exceeded my expectations… as a longtime fan with a pretty encyclopedic knowledge of the band, i knew the story of writing “carousel”, or “rock show”/“first date” would make it in. but there are some bombshell revelations across this tome, far more than i had anticipated. among them: mark has severe anxiety and OCD that has worsened at points in the band’s history. his childhood fear of things that fall apart put his role in the trio as mediator, analogous to the role of the bass in any rock lineup. mark likes order, and hates disorder. without blink, he has no identity. his cancer diaries, abridged in this release, are deeply dark and revealing — a truly raw insight into his thinking and lack of respect for himself. and not as often, mark’s history as a bookworm gives rise to a writerly style that truly shines… how the shag carpet of his childhood home he would lay on listening to records “betrayed him” as the apple juice soaked into it in the midst of a fight. or how the light from the lamppost outside the studio during the breakup brought to mind the lamppost he climbed at the start of the band. for me, the harrowing story of the domestic abuse he witnessed that manifested itself later in “go” is an extraordinary highlight. the stories of the breakups aren’t as vitriolic or intense as a fan like me might savor, but it doesn’t need to be at this point, in 2025. he says plenty without saying too much, on subjects of interest like BCR, modlife, wives, and more. and some moments don’t make the cut: he never mentions his brief career as a producer, and +44 comes and goes (on chapter 44, i might add) without much background. but almost everything is here: the jokes and tears, the summit and the bottom. even stories told elsewhere, like the punk days of starting the band, or shooting the music videos, are riveting and given new energy. all of the photos are culled from mark’s personal collection, so there’s a few new shots, and they’re thoughtfully dispersed throughout the text. also: the story of mark meeting his wife is EXTREMELY cute. altogether, it’s about as honest on most things as a fan could hope, but more pedestrian and less viscerally exciting as travis’s gun-toting, gangsta memoir. but his trials with cancer and self-doubt make it far more down-to-earth than its counterpart, and more likable overall. it’s the bio we “always” wanted. and while the focus on the limelight of the past can feel like a concession — to the reader, to the publisher, to everyone — it simply makes sense. in truth, blink is an old band now, and they’re squarely in the rearview. but after all: the past is only the future with the lights on. now for the juicy tidbits. if you would rather wait and read the whole book, PLEASE ignore what’s below in the spoiler tag. but given how avidly i’ve waited and other fans have waited, i wanted to collect the most surprising, shocking reveals, especially for those that simply can’t wait:

No Fun & All In My Head = they feel like the belong to OMT (the actual album) – it doesn't matter if the lyrics aren't too great, these songs are catchy, loud, fun and pretty much in your face like all the other songs on OMT. "Can't Go Back" to "Take Me In" is where I think this new batch of songs feel cohesive as a whole, those six songs don't sound like random b-sides, they all have a toned down vibe, the bass and guitar are kind new wavey, and they bring nothing but good energy. Can't Go Back = perfect song. Every Other Weekend = feels like it's straight out of Neighbourhoods and blink is pushing their "Cure" influences. The funny thing about The Cure is that their gloom can be as heavy as their joy is bright and buoyant, and blink are just the same, they can really do both things as well and when they do it, it works. Everyone Everywhere = it was very alienating on the first listen because of the odd pacing, but it got better this morning. I think the last minute is what makes it a good one. Is this the sister song of Terrified? If You Never Left = my favorite song. It has that kind of melody only blink can make. Mark's bridge rocks. This song just makes me happy. One Night Stand = I really like the nostalgic vibe, Mark and Tom sharing the song, the ending with all the vocal layers and the BTD kind of intro. Take Me In = it's way better than Childhood, such a solid epilogue for an album that has brought a lot of emotions out of me. Are there modern production aspects I'm not so fond of? sure... but to have these dudes, loving each other again and making these tunes full of joy and melancholy at the same time is everything to me. The problem now is that it feels like the dad who left to get milk 20 years ago is back to stay so if blink breaks up again it will really crush me.

Man I wish the never-ending bickering was at least about something funny, like Oliver's alleged bro code moment with Tom. This is just fucking boring.

Alright Mark, here is evidence that the fans who "come for the hits" don't really know "the hits"......so play more songs from Dude Ranch for christ's sake!

“Some welcomed the excessive amount of off-putting humor. When Hoppus remarked: “I like that they made a statue of your mom’s clitoris here in Chicago — it’s called The Bean and it’s actual size,” the crowd laughed. Some even applauded. The “The Bean” comment was an intro to “I Miss You,” a song the audience sang along to well. Moments in time passed where the band gave up singing and pointed the microphone toward the audience to hear just them singing the words back, but it did not erase the immature joke made just moments before.” whoever wrote this must be the most boring cunt to have ever lived

I loved Mark's book, it's so well written, and it's an emotional roller coaster that hooks you from page one and doesn't let go. The highs are really high and lows are way lower than expected. The recurring “one in a million” theme ties it all together beautifully, and I love how the story starts from Mark's desert town roots and then circles back to the desert for their triumphant comeback at Coachella. As diehard fans/self made blink historians, don't expect to find things you've never heard of, but the chapter on Robert Smith caught me off guard in the best way lol And as Kay noted this morning, the story behind "Go" was horrifying. I think Mark had to hold some juicier details from the TRL era and I'm sure he has a lot more to say about the pop disaster tour, but I understand why he didn't do it and kept telling us that Billie Joe and Mike are nice guys. Scott's complete absence from the book is another thing that wasn't unexpected. As someone who has always seen Scott as a core member despite lacking Mark and Tom's “IT factor,” I’m left wondering if maybe we should reassess his role in the band at this point. I'm just rambling- let's say thinking out loud but in this case typing lol. I woke up at 5:30 am because my cat was crying and instead of going back to sleep I started reading the book, finished at around 11:30, it was a great full immersion, loved every second of it. blink life. for life. 😭🩷

I didn't really comment on the two songs because I only listened to them once, I'll check them out again in two weeks when the Deluxe comes out. To be fair, I also only listened to Can't Go Back once from the first video that was uploaded on YouTube months ago, but when they played it last night at Reading it sounded gigantic. (Don't skip Not Now because this was probably the best performance they ever did of the song) I think it will be interesting to see how the new songs blend together. I'm going to make a playlist on Spotify to separate them from OMT so it'll be like listening to an EP of bonus tracks. And if they're not good then it's alright, blink is back, they're having fun together, they make music, nothing makes me smile more than seeing my favorite band happy and thriving, even if the music is not excellent.

so what i'm saying is i'm waiting for the dark, depth-filled song about mark suing his neighbors for planting a tree too tall.

The more I think about it, I think it was Mark that created the environment that makes me cringe when he does gross lyrics.. I'm into Turn This Off and think it's funny...but then this hits: When I first took you out for sushi on a date You took me home, I sadly pumped away On your stomach, face or ass It's your fault I came fast I don't think that he's built up enough credit to do the couch cum lyrics like this after he's been such a prude over the last several years. He interrupted and got pissed when Tom went crazy on stage during reunion, he started censoring blink songs live, he censored his Discord to the point of banning "fuck." He doesn't have the capital with me to be dropping these lines right now. It's not a me problem!

I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone mention this on this board. Ever.

So a bit back I posted that my buddy sold something on eBay to Skiba and requested a sketch. Coincidentally enough a couple months later Skiba bought something from me as well so I went ahead and requested a sketch too

Been blasting Man Overboard lately. What a fucking song man. Best blink intro? Bassline is cool as fuck, Mark and Tom trading vocals that fucking riff 🔥 they look fucking great in the video too

If I was a millionaire like Oliver I would book a flight + hotel for everyone on the boards to go to this show - OR to a Dude Ranch tour, but the Dude Ranch tour will never happen so I'll take everyone to this show now. How much would it be? More than 100k?

In a thread full of Jan and Diddy posts you still somehow manage to post the worst shit ever.

C'mon dude don't be so gullible. The reasons he "needed a break" weren't reasons that would have been resolved in a year. They persisted all the way through the SECOND break up years later. He "needed a break" because his wife was a control freak and demanded he be home. Read between the lines. Look at how his behavior has changed since he got divorced. He broke blink up and then sat at home, popped pills, lost his mind, and ended devoting even more energy into projects no one wanted. That is not what you do when you need a real break. But he was at home so it was okay.

"Laugh at the bands we hate All the spots we used to skate Well they're still there, but we've gone our own ways I know it's for the best but sometimes I wonder Will I ever have friends like you again?" The older I get the more I treasure pre-Enema blink.

Yeah, this is not true at all. When they played Apple Shampoo out of nowhere in 2013, the crowd went crazy. When they played the little acoustic set in 2012 with Give Me One Good Reason and M+M’s, everyone was singing along. When they played Easy Target at my show in 2014, people started moshing. They can afford to play 2 or even 3 deep cuts, their fans in the audience are not a bunch of stupid people who don’t know shit about the band they’re seeing live, they would love it, but Mark doesn’t want to.

So underrated. That chorus is gold. Drums are so good, Travis rips.

Mark's a well-read motherfucker. This book should kick asssss. Finally get THE insight into the Mark/Tom love srory. I emailed Dan Ozzi, the co-writer, a year or so ago - asking for writing advice. He was really gracious. When I found out that he was involved in Mark's book, I shared the Zoom story. He was happy to hear it. Hope it sells a buttload

Yep, the Skiba era could've been legendary, but they gagged my boy.

The problem with the Skiba era wasn’t Skiba

Man he's had such a glow up from the the goth chef era.

Dude I did this as a joke, lighten up.

Yooo-uuUUuu-oooo are either gonna love it or yoo-uuUuuu-ooo gonna hate it.

Twitter came in clutch once again! 'Take Me In' 'Can't Go Back' Studio version

THEY DON'T OWE YOU SHIT WASN'T THE ZANE LOWE INTERVIEW ENOUGH FOR YOU JESUS FUCKING CHRIST

MTYK is my favorite song on the album hands down. Feels like it's talking directly to me, is aggressive and Tom and Mark both sound great on it. I love it. "I don't feel shame, I don't have highs, but I've got some lows I feel a bit cursed, I've been numb and sinking down like a stone" couldn't possibly hit me harder.

Just watched now. So good. I love Travis signing along to rock show 🤣 never seen him sing along before, tom with the ‘you’re welcome humanity’ on his guitar made me chuckle too. The crowd were great, yes they weren’t going fucking insane or anything but you could hear them singing along to basically every song, it’s so cool when you see young teenagers in the crowd, this band will never die. I think Tom was struggling towards the end in the bridge to ATST I think you can see mark walk over to him and Tom is saying ‘ I’m trying’. I think he was still sick. He genuinly looks like he’s in pain when he sings 🤣 I fucking love the feeling this bridge, the pink lights look so fucking cool during it. How lucky are we that these guys are back together and in a great place. So blessed. I’m 36 but nothing makes me happier than this band.

It’s the “all timer” part that really gets me. Jan, the blink fan that doesn’t like carousel, going away to college or dance with me, one of his favourite Mark lines is one that isn’t even real. its like poetry.

It’s always like this with them and I will never learn because I was actually expecting to hear a song today lol

October 2023 = best time we’ve ever had as blink fans since I can remember. I always had the boards open on my computer at work and I was always online when I was home 😂 the collective shock and excitement and fun of it all was amazing.

The best part was baiting the entire Reddit community into thinking we had the leak early and then seeing their posts of anger lmao.

Rybread sucks dog dicks.

OMG

just want to shout out how fucking awesome it is right now that blink 182 was playing a fuckin' stadium in their hometown, in 2024, delivering songs like NOT NOW and M+Ms to an audience of 40,000 fans. it's easy to criticize the setlist in the past but there's no arguing that not only is the band firing on all cylinders at the moment, but they're delivering what we as fans want. this and the last tour are clear trial runs at the rest of their career: to see if they can age into lucrative late-career classic rock territory, where they play better and are more consistent across the board. to see if they can play stadiums for the first time and play every other summer, journey/def leppard style, into their 70s. i really think they can at this rate. it's such a treat to be a fan right now.

Ghost is such a better song than UAN, and a better live banger too.

This just reminded me of the random noob we had here a few years ago who claimed he was related to Jen and absolutely insisted Tom and Jen weren't getting divorced.

Just finished this. It’s fantastic. I’m now a markbot. I love how he’s blinks biggest fan. The heartbeat of the band. I felt fucking sick all the way through the cancer chapters, I’m heartbroken he went through that but my god thank fuck he’s still here and cancer free, the last chapter got me teary eyed. I fucking love this band, what a story ffs. I love that instrumental he made too for the audio book. I think it’s an old demo? It sounds very plus44, I hope they use it for a future blink song.

That's our Mark! haha

I am ethically opposed to all AI in music, art, film, everything. Needs to die.

i'm the only one who cares about this (and possibly @boxelder) but it's so cool and mark sounds great

It’s awesome seeing Tom so happy these days! Couldn’t even imagine him doing something like this 10 years ago. He finally looks like he’s being who he really is.

The ole’s are great and fun and the final chorus kicks so much ass because the ole’s were there in the first place.

Tom sounds fucking fantastic on box car though doesn’t he. That’s the best he’s ever sounded imo.

You guys are pretty weird sometimes.

Mate if we had got Anthem 3 instead of Edging I think I would have exploded. Imagine that’s the first thing we hear of toms return. I’d still be in a coma now

Saw them last night with a huge group of old friends, we spent the day at the beach and then ALK3 played on the same beach, we had a blast - happiest times 💜

I didn’t get to see blink Friday night, but I was able to see DJ Diesel (Shaquille O’Neal) lmao