Disaster Reunites Punk Rockers

It only took a few deaths and some third-degree burns to get the boys of blink-182 back together, but hey, whatever works, right? The trio, which includes the recently recovered drummer Travis Barker, along with Mark Hoppus and Tom DeLange, haven’t talked in four years after their messy 2005 break up, according to a Mark Hoppus blog. Are you all for a Blink-182 reunion no matter the cause? Then get on top of things now by visiting StubHub for the new Blink 182 tickets!

Barker’s September tragedy had the tattooed drummer and Adam Goldstein, aka DJ AM, the only surviving members of a deadly plane crash in Colombia, South Carolina that killed four including two associates of Barker and longtime blink-182 buds. The incident left the nation stunned as to the recoveries of Barker and Goldstein, who were both badly burned after their planes’ tire blew out during takeoff. Since the incident and subsequent recovery, Barker, along with bassist and vocalist Hoppus and guitarist/vocalist DeLange, have started to reconnect. The trio, which also faced another recent misfortune when Blink producer Jerry Finn died suddenly, have been “talking.” “In the midst of everything else that has happened lately, Tom, Travis and I have all spoken together,” Hoppus wrote in his blog. “First through a number of phone calls, and then a couple of weeks ago we all hung out for few hours.”

Though any talks of a reunion are instantly denied, commenting that “Obviously the first question for a lot of people will be, ‘Does this mean a Blink-182 reunion?’ The answer is that none of us know. We haven’t talked about it at all…the events of the past two months supersede everything that happened before. Life is too short.” The group’s indefinite hiatus came February 2005 after the group had worked together for 12 years. While the past few years have connected the members in more ways than one, with Hoppus and Barker forming +44 in 2004 and DeLange with his own Angels & Airwaves (who constantly trashed blink-182’s image in an attempt to promote his new group), the members have finally put aside their differences and could potentially reconnect to add a few million more records to their already astounding 12.7 million. To come together, however, wouldn’t be a simple matter, though considering fans have been dreaming of this day since their last performance (December 16, 2004) and subsequent announcement a few months later.

Blink-182 formed in San Diego, California with DeLonge, Hoppus and original drummer Scott Raynor. Their 1993 debut Fly Swatter and album Buddha got the boys to work with Grilled Cheese/Cargo for 1995’s Cheshire Cat. Originally deemed Blink, after a lawsuit threat from an Irish group of the same led to their name change, they toured with Southern California’s Warped Tour and supported Pennywise and NOFX during their world tours. In 1997 the LP Dude Ranch appeared on Cargo and MCA, and with their fourth album, Enema of the State welcomed Barker into the group. The album became a commercial success with bubble-gum punk singles like “What’s My Age Again?” and “All the Small Things.” The four million sold record led to their next hit, The Mark, Tom and Travis Show (The Enema Strikes Back), a live album which followed Take Off Your Pants and Jacket, released in 2001.