Blink-182 is Back and in Vancouver!

5 stars

The Mark, Tom and Travis Show comes to rock GM Place just like old times, only better.

Early Tuesday morning, in the midst of a July heat wave, crowds trickled in from all over B.C. to the area surrounding Vancouver’s General Motors Place. Donning Vans and Converse sneakers despite the almost 30 degree weather, die-hard fans battled the stifling conditions eager to catch a glimpse of the legendary Californian pop-punk trio. Compared to the four year hiatus Blink-182 embarked on in 2005, waiting a few hours was nothing to dedicated fans. Almost 17 years since the band’s formation as simply “Blink”, Tom DeLonge, Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker still have the world at their feet.

Equipped with floor tickets and overwhelming enthusiasm, spectators rushed to the front as two-piece band, Chester French began their set which included popular single She Loves Everybody (featured on the season four premiere of Entourage), at 7:00 PM. Chester French was followed by The All-American Rejects who emerged onstage in a flash of Hulkesque green light to perform their hits including Move Along, and Dirty Little Secret, while shirtless frontman, Tyson Ritter actively interacted with audience. At one point, he encouraged the audience to say “dirty” in their “sexiest voice possible.” After finishing their hour-long set, The All-American Rejects exited the stage leaving the audience with high expectations.

Finally, opening with Dumpweed, Blink-182 emerged from behind a black curtain to 15,000 fans on their feet. The band rocked through their set, which included popular tracks All the Small Things, What’s My Age Again?, The Rock Show and Josie, breaking only for playful onstage banter. DeLonge and Hoppus alternated teasing each other and the audience, while Barker simply uttered “hi” (followed by an unmatched amount of cheering from the crowd). The most phenomenal part of the evening was the first ever unveiling of Barker’s gravity-defying drum solo, in which he rotated, turned and flew over the audience, while still flawlessly delivering his signature beats. After massive amounts of applause for the unforgettable routine, DeLonge and Hoppus joined Barker onstage to end the show with Dammit.

It is near impossible to fully understand the phenomenon that is Blink-182 until you have seen them live. Being one of the most influential and heavily cited pop-punk bands, the boundless, almost palpable energy that was present at their show was indomitable, and most definitely worth the wait.