What's My Age Again?
According to blink-182, Age Clearly Doesn't Matter
This past Sunday, blink-182 brought their Enema of The State 20th Anniversary tour to Toronto's Budweiser Stage. It was a perfect night along the water for a full show of nostalgia, blow up aliens and Travis Barker in a hamster ball.
For support, blink-182 brought along Neck Deep from the UK and Canada's own Simple Plan. The boys from Montreal were given a full hour, and had fans so into the set, they probably could have done more. All the hits from your angsty childhood were on display, including Shut Up, Addicted and I'd Do Anything. From there, they dove into the pop-rock world they explored in the later 2000's with Jet Lag and Your Love Is A Lie. To conclude, the boys lead by front man Pierre Bouvier, ended with the smash hits I'm Just A Kid, and Perfect. And perfect the set was...
Once all the former punk canucks were warmed up, blink hit the stage and began performing their 1999, multi-platinum selling album Enema of the State. The album was played in full, and at first I thought this would be a little off setting. How could you possibly not have All The Small Things, as your encore? Their biggest hit was about 25 minutes into their set, but it worked.
After the full run through of Enema, the boys did an acoustic portion on the lawns, followed by a Travis Barker drum solo worthy of a Cirque du Soleil performance. The legendary drummer, was strapped into a giant hamster ball, where his kit did everything from rotations, turns and flips. His drumming perfection was paired with a Skrillex style backing track, which left fans both stunned, surprised and satisfied.
To conclude to band pulled out hits, I Miss You and First Date. Fans from all levels were jumping around as if they were a teenager back in 1999, and judging by the young age of some of the fans (including myself), it seems like blink have brought around a new generation of fans too. Having not been to a blink show during their prime, I can't compare back to their older days, however, the amount of energy and enthusiasm brought by the band was parallel to a modern day rock band filled with kids in their 20's. You could tell by the looks on their faces, that everything was left on stage. It's obvious these, now family men, are still loving what they do 20 years later.
Despite the recent health issues from Travis Barker, or ongoing rumours of reunions with original guitarist Tom DeLong, none of that seemed to show on stage. Blink brought their eh-game to Toronto on Sunday, and proved that not remembering your age, clearly doesn't matter.
