The history of Blink 182 would make for a great book, with the amount of success and opportunties they’ve have had, they’ve also had their drama and problems. Every band goes through a different magnatitude of these, but for most of these, us fans, saw them happen right in front of us. As some may say being in a band is like being in a disfunctional family. Yet, through it all, Blink 182 is still here, putting out great music with each release, and making jokes along the way.

This World Tour would be a special one, for this would be the tour where Tom Delonge returns to Blink 182. For the past 6 years Matt Skiba of Alkaline Trio was filling in on guitar and vocals, and even though Matt did a great job filling in, the Mark, Tom, and Travis show was something incomparable. The chemistry and the stage banter from Mark, Tom, and Travis was always a highlight to their shows, and to finally have that back was like seeing an old friend.

For this date of the tour, latest Hopeless Records signing Destory Boys opened the show. Singer Alexia Roditis came out dressed as a nun, which may have been a jab at the loud Christian protesters who were in front of the venue. They were proclaiming everyone is going to hell for attending the concert. If the nun outfit wasn’t towards them, it was a coincidence. The band would then break into a cover of “Bulls On Parade” by Rage Against The Machine, which was done very well. Even though Destroy Boys are a new signing to Hopeless Records, they have plenty of material out for they have been performing since around 2015. They performed songs from almost all their albums with the most being from Open Mouth, Open Heart. With almost a pack venuealready, Destroy Boys put on a great show that showcased the spirit of punk as if it was performed in a small venue.

The next band was a band that has been making waves recently, and I couldn’t pin point when it started to happen, but it is happening in a big way. It was clear that once they hit the stage, the crowd broke into singing along and moving around in the pit. It is rare seeing a hardcore band getting this much attention, but Turnstile is getting the attention and it is great seeing it happening. Their live performance on a big stage was just a tease, because their sound needs to be witnessed in a small space. I can already see the people jumping off the stage, the circle pits, and the sing alongs with singer Brendan Yates if this was a smaller venue. I could only imagine the atmosphere in a small club, but for this tour, Turnstile worked with this bigger stage to make the audience feel more connected. Almost every song played was from their latest album Glow On, which makes because since this album has probably became a lot of fans gateway into this band and hardcore music. Even though Turnstile has other releases, I think after this tour you’d have to wait to hear older songs when they do a headline tour. When that is is still to be determined, but this tour with Blink 182 brought them even more exposure and it is only upward from here.

Growing up bands like Green Day, The Offspring, and of course Blink 182 were spun in my c.d. player and discman non stop. These three bands opened the doors to punk rock in my life, and it is no wonder that when Blink 182 broke up in 2005 it was like saying your parents are divorcing. Forunately, they got back together in 2009 and all was better. Then a few years later Tom would step down and Matt Skiba would join in, which was good, but the Mark, Tom, and Travis show was irreplacable. Something about all three of them on stage and the banter made those shows the best shows. Then in 2023, it was announced Tom has rejoined and a new album is coming out in the near future. Blink 182 have a very roller coaster history, what band doesn’t, but through it all they are still a band that no matter who is in the band us fans will love them to the very end.

As Blink 182 came on stage the crowd’s applause was deafening, and Mark and Tom took the time to jokingly pose for everyone. Right away they broke into songs from the Take Off Your Pants And Jacket era. Any speculation that they weren’t going to be the same on stage was thrown out the window. Just from the fourth song in, this was probably the best Blink 182 show I’ve seen. Mark’s skipping around the stage, Tom’s stance while making faces, and Travis just hitting the drums perfectly, it honestly felt like seeing a friend you haven’t seen in years. You could feel the positivity all around and I could feel myself smiling the whole time.

As for the banter, the guys didn’t censor themselves or tone it down. There was the mom jokes, the perverted jokes, and the sex jokes. Obviously we’ve know for years that these were only jokes and to never take them serious. However, Tom did try to convince Mark that PornHub was a documentary/research website, but he kept breaking character and laughing. Its moments like this that make you love Blink 182 shows for the shear fun of it.

Throughout their set they played all their major hits including their latest single “Edging”, but it was very interesting to hear “Cynical” and “Bored To Death”. These songs were released during the Skiba era and hearing Tom take over his parts fit perfectly. When Skiba originally joined, I remember Mark saying in an interview that they wanted someone that can hit Tom’s notes naturally. Skiba was their first choice and boy were they right to choose him. Hearing the California songs with Tom singing was a duh they really do sing the same way. I didn’t realize it then, but hearing both now, it was a no brainer that Skiba was a perfect replacement.

The band finished with four of their most popular songs, one right after another with “Dammit” being the last one. It truly was their best show and I am not saying that because Tom is back, I honestly think they were all looking forward to be back on stage. Even though pre-orders for a new album is on their website, it is still not known when it is coming out. However, when it does, I am sure it will be a great piece of work and I hope we get more tours because for how great this show was, we still want more Blink 182.