Blink 182 was one of the most popular pop-punk bands. The trio’s infectious melodies and lyrics that combine juvenile and toilet humor have helped catapult them into the mainstream after spending several years in the backburner.

The trio of Tom DeLonge, Mark Hoppus, and Travis Barker (who replaced the original drummer, Scott Raynor) have been enjoying much success in their recording careers as well as their television and film appearances. They were widely known all over the world probably because no pop-punk/rock band sounds like them for quite some time.

They inject toilet humor in their lyrics; stories of insecure young guys and hard-to-get girls infused with very good melodies that will stick to your mind and give you last-song-syndrome.

The group formed in 1992, when DeLonge met Hoppus and started jamming in DeLonge’s garage. Their drummer, initially, was Scott Raynor, who left the band after the success of their Dude Ranch album. Travis Barker, who was a drummer for the band’s support band The Aquabats, replaced Raynor.

During the early half of the 90s, the original Blink 182 members released two albums, Buddha and Cheshire Cat—both independent records. By 1997, the group was ready to move into the mainstream. When they released Dude Ranch, Blink 182 proved they were ready for the big time. Due mainly to the fact that their songs are written very well—often irreverent and rough—success was knocking at their doors. Their flair for lyric writing was undeniable.

Among the tracks that caught the ears of listeners worldwide are: “I’m Sorry” and “Dammit.” The adolescent angst evident on the tracks appealed to the younger market immediately.

By the time they released their next album, Enema of the State in 1999, Blink 182 has got a hold on their target audience. Hits emerged such as “All the Small Things,” “What’s My Age Again?,” and “Adam’s Song.”

These pop songs crossed over all radio formats and became theme songs for teens that loved the trio. The songs were so moving that “Adam’s Song” caused a stir in 2000 when it was set to replay indefinitely on a stereo as 17-year-old boy, Greg Barnes, hanged himself in the garage of his family’s home.

Within two years, Enema of the State turned gold and platinum five times. The band’s music, which portrayed the common emotions experienced by the young, remained highly-relatable to their audience.

Blink 182 released a live album, The Mark, Tom & Travis Show in 2000. It included most of their greatest hits plus previously unreleased tracks. It sold like hot pancakes.

The following year, the trio went back to studio recording and came out with Take Off Your Pants and Jacket—an attempt to venture into new horizons but without losing touch to the kind of sound their market initially liked. From such album came hits like ”The Rock Show,” which had a lot of airplay in rock stations. The album went double-platinum.

Blink 182’s attempt at a more serious persona was exemplified in their fifth album, which was called Blink 182 or sometimes, just Untitled, Blink 182. The trio tried to modulate the humor in their lyrics and focus on the more mature relationships. It earned them wide respect, but did not do well commercially as the previous albums. However, “I Miss You” became a hit, and helped the album turn platinum.

After DeLonge left the group on February 22, 2005, Geffen Records released a Greatest Hits album in November.
Blink 182 was gone for almost 5 years, with each member doing their own thing: DeLonge forming a new band; Hoppus and Barker releasing a new album. But in 2009, during the 51st Grammy Awards, the trio appeared together onstage and announced that the band is back together.