Info Taken from---blink zone
The Story Begins
Blink 182 started way back in 1992 with it's first member Thomas Matthew
DeLonge. Tom was a skater punk growing up in Ridgecrest, California where
he was known to skateboard all day and piss people off. Tom discovered alcohol
at an early age and was expelled from High School for drinking at a basketball
game. Luckily, that gave him more time to play guitar and help jumpstart his
band. While singing "Who's Gonna Shave Your Back Tonight" at the Rancho Bernardo
High Battle of the Bands, Tom met a kid named Scott Raynor. 14-year-old Scott
was a heavy-metal dude with long hair who loved Metallica, and as Tom could
see knew how to play drums well enough. So Tom recruited him and the last
member of the band was introduced to Tom by Anne Hoppus. Anne had a brother
named Markus Allan Hoppus who had just moved to Ridgecrest - and brought
his bass guitar along with him. Mark loved punk music and sick jokes as well
as Tom did so when the two met up in Tom's garage it was, simply put, 'love
at first sight.'
Blink 182
After messing around with Duck Tape for a while, the trio decided on the
name Blink instead. The guys started practicing in Scott's bedroom and recorded
a four-track tape dubbed Flyswatter. Blink started handing out Flyswatter,
and as crappy as it was, it got them their first shows. Although they weren't
spectacular or anything, their first shows they were good practice and surprisingly
Blink's fan base was growing. It wasn't too easy for a no-name band to land
shows at clubs, but with Tom pushing Blink forward, the band was becoming
more recognized in San Diego. The band continued playing through 1993, and
in 1994 with a little bit of money they produced the original demo tape Buddha.
With Buddha's sales rising in local stores and more fans than before, Blink
received a record deal from Cargo Records. Blink along with Cargo released
their first album Cheshire Cat, which caught the attention of a different
Blink. An Irish techno band also named Blink threatend to sue if Mark, Tom,
and Scott didn't change to something other than Blink. The guys agreed and
Blink 182 was born.
On The Road
Cheshire cat was re-released in 1994 with Blink 182 on the cover and the
group began touring to promote their new album in their van the Millenium
Falcon. The guys were in awe of the awesome bands they got to tour with including
NOFX, Pennywise, and Unwritten Law. While touring was fun and they had a new,
very cool manager Rick DeVoe, Blink 182 became aware that Cheshire Cat was
not reaching all their fans. Most of Cargo Records' employees did not take
the band seriously so they chose not to work with them or not to help them
out much. They didn't realize that Blink 182 did take their music careers
seriously and wanted a record label that would treat them as an actual band.
MCA wanted Blink 182 badly and said they understood Blink's requests and guranteed
them complete artistic control. So Blink decided they were the right label
for them and released Dude Ranch in 1996. Their second album went gold in
January 1998 with 500,000 copies sold in the US.
A New Member
At about the same time Dude Ranch went gold, Blink 182 was having problems
between the members. From touring together for so long, the guys were sick
of each other. Scott's mood darkened and he started seperating himself from
Mark and Tom. The tension kept building until the SnoCore tour, where Blink
was playing alongside Primus and the Aquabats. Scott kept pushing his bandmates
away and often disappeared between shows. Halfway during the tour Scott announced
that he was going to be leaving to go home for a while. Mark and Tom were
shocked - they had shows to play, but not drummer. Lucky, Travis Barker, drummer
for the Aquabats, offered to fill in for Scott. He only had 45 minutes to
learn Blink's songs, yet he somehow pulled it off. Scott returned, but feelings
between him and the other band members weren't right; the original Blink
182 line-up split for good. Mark and Tom turned to Travis and asked if he
would like to be their new drummer - he took the offer and the new Blink
182 was born.
Blink Hits It Big
2 years had passed since the band had recorded an album, and now it was
time to go back to the studio. In January of 1999 Mark, Tom, and Travis released
Enema Of The State, the album that launched Blink 182 to the top by attracting
a new wave of fans and helping them to become one of the most well know punk
rock bands. Their hit singles off of Enema What's My Age Again?, Adam's Song,
and All The Small Things inspired videos that received continuous play on
MTV. To satisfy the new legions of fans Blink 182 embarked on two new arena
tours - the Loserkids Tour in 1999 followed by The Mark, Tom, and Travis Show
tour in 2000. Afterwards the band released a limited edition live album called
The Enema Strikes Back: The Mark, Tom, and Travis Show featuring performances
off the Mark, Tom, and Travis Show tour. The band's popularity had skyrocketed
and they were even included in the movies American Pie, Shake, Rattle, and
Roll, and Tom in Idle Hands. Blink 182 has acquired numerous rewards for Enema
Of The State and a year after the Enema Strikes Back came out the band has
released yet another album with MCA - Take Off Your Pants And Jacket.
Credit
Written by Webmaster at blink zone, info taken from Tales From Beneath Your
Mom and random sites.
