Neighborhoods (Blink-182 album)
Encyclopedia
Neighborhoods is the sixth studio album
by the American pop punk
band Blink-182
, released September 27, 2011 through DGC Records
and Interscope Records
. Their first album of new material in eight years, its recording followed the band's 2009 reunion after a four-year hiatus. Due to conflicts within the trio, the band entered an "indefinite hiatus" in 2005 and the members explored various side-projects. After two separate tragedies regarding the band and their entourage, the members of the band decided to reunite in late 2008, with plans for a new album and tour. It is the first Blink-182 album produced by the band members without the help of an outside record producer
.
The band's studio autonomy, tours, managers and personal projects stalled the recording process, which lasted from shortly after the band's February 2009 reunion to July 2011. The band developed Neighborhoods in separate studios and regrouped at various periods to record. The band's numerous delays in the recording process resulted in the band canceling a European tour and the label setting a deadline for the album to be due. The band explored many experimental recording techniques during the sessions but set a goal to maintain a pop sensibility. The trio wrote dark lyrics regarding such subjects as isolation, confusion and death. The band infused inspiration from each member's various musical tastes to form a unique sound that recalled their separate upbringings, leading the trio to compare the album to separate neighborhoods.
The first single from Neighborhoods, "Up All Night
", premiered on July 15, 2011, while the second, "After Midnight", followed on September 6, 2011. The album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200
with 151,000 copies sold in its first week, falling to No. 10 with 31,000 scans in its second week.
expressed his desire to cancel an upcoming tour and enter a half-year respite from touring. At a band meeting which coincided with the beginning of Blink-182's final European tour in December, DeLonge expressed his desire to spend more time with his family. He also declined recording a new album. During the band's six-month break, bassist Mark Hoppus
expressed his desire for the band to perform at Music for Relief
's Concert for South Asia, a benefit show to aid victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
. DeLonge agreed to perform, and the band subsequently began rehearsing for the event in February 2005. Further tensions, however, arose between the band members during rehearsals, and they began arguing about a variety of issues, such as the band's "forced" break. Manager Rick DeVoe phoned Hoppus and drummer Travis Barker
, who were waiting in the rehearsal space for DeLonge, the following day to tell them that DeLonge had quit the band, stating: "As of today, Tom DeLonge is no longer a member of Blink-182." Jordan Schur, the former president of Geffen Records, reportedly told Barker: "any press you do, make sure you say everything is cool," opting to instead issue a statement calling the band's break-up an 'indefinite hiatus'. During the hiatus, DeLonge formed rock band Angels & Airwaves
while Barker and Hoppus continued playing together in +44
.
In June 2008, DeLonge told Spinner.com
he had "no desire to go back and play in Blink-182 again." In July 2008, former Blink-182 producer Jerry Finn
, who had produced every Blink record since Enema of the State
(as well as +44's debut, When Your Heart Stops Beating
), suffered a cerebral hemorrhage. In August, he was taken off life support and died on August 21. Hoppus took to his blog, HiMyNameisMark, to express his feelings: "I feel blessed to have worked with and learned so much from him. But most of all, I am honored to call him my dear friend. Jerry, I miss you already." On September 19, Barker and collaborator Adam Goldstein
(aka DJ AM), were involved in a plane crash that killed four people, leaving Barker and Goldstein the only survivors. The accident resulted in sixteen surgeries, 48-hour blood transfusion
s and Barker developing post-traumatic stress disorder
.
Immediately the two cataclysmic incidents raised rumors of a possible Blink-182 reunion. Hoppus was alerted about Barker's accident by a phone call in the middle of the night and jumped on the next flight to the burn center. DeLonge found out via the TV news at an airport while waiting to board a flight. He landed and mailed a letter and two photographs to Barker: a photo of Blink aboard a submarine in the Middle East and another of himself and his two kids. "One was 'Do you remember who we were?' and the other was 'This is who I am now,' " DeLonge says. "It was a good moment to put the shit aside." DeLonge also commented that, no matter what happened between himself and Barker in the past, "none of it matters when it comes down to somebody getting hurt." Hoppus's web site and MySpace page were not updated since the day before news of the accident broke, but he finally took to his blog on November 18 to express his feelings, saying that he "hadn't had it in him" to post, adding that "these past two months have been the hardest times I can remember." He also revealed that he, DeLonge, and Barker had all spoken in the aftermath. Barker quashed the rumors in December, but noted that they had been getting along.
Talk of a reunion commenced weeks after the trio began speaking again. After a two-hour phone conversation between DeLonge and Hoppus, an arrangement was made for the trio to meet up at Hoppus and Barker's Los Angeles
studio in October 2008. DeLonge was the first to approach the subject of reuniting. The trio had, in Hoppus's words, "two gnarly heart-to-hearts," during which the three opened up. "Tom had just kind of come out to Los Angeles for the day," recalled Hoppus, "I remember he said, 'So, what do you guys think? Where are your heads at?' And I said, 'I think we should continue with what we've been doing for the past 17 years. I think we should get back on the road and back in the studio and do what we love doing.'" Hoppus stated in January 2009, in reference to a reunion, that "the future is wide open," although fans were initially skeptical. Eventually, the band appeared for the first time on stage together in nearly five years as presenters at the 51st Grammy Awards
on February 8. Barker said, "We used to play music together, and we decided we're going to play music together again," and Hoppus yelled, "Blink-182 is back!" The band's official website was updated with a statement: "To put it simply, We're back. We mean, really back. Picking up where we left off and then some. In the studio writing and recording a new album. Preparing to tour the world yet again. Friendships reformed. 17 years deep in our legacy."
". The trio wanted to release it as a single then, but quickly they realized that it was too ambitious to complete it before their reunion tour
began in July. Sessions were stalled by the summer 2009 reunion tour, during which the band reconnected musically and emotionally. During the tour, Barker got the phone call that DJ AM had overdosed and died in New York, which heavily affected him. The band did a large amount of writing before leaving on tour, but upon completion of the tour, they took time off to "take a couple of months and chill and do other stuff," with intentions to regroup in 2010. DeLonge learned during the recording process, in his own words, to "let go and be okay with not being able to control everything." Although the three musicians were at first rarely in the same room while recording, opting to work on their parts individually, DeLonge asserted that the method of recording was a more efficient way of working considering the schedules, not due to a lack of unity within the band. In addition to the tragedy regarding DJ AM, DeLonge was diagnosed with skin cancer during 2010, but it eventually was cleared.
The album was recorded at both DeLonge's studio in San Diego and in Los Angeles by Hoppus and Barker. Recording in separate studios was DeLonge's idea, and ideas were exchanged via e-mail. Various engineers met up in person to trade files on hard drives. In June and July 2010, the band spent time at their rehearsal spot, writing and recording new songs. The band intended to wrap up touring by September, and stay in the studio for the rest of the year until the album was finished. In early 2011, Barker left for a tour in support of the release of his solo album, while DeLonge and Hoppus continued to work at their separate studios. Under pressure, the band released a statement in April that effectively rescheduled all European tour dates due to the album's prolonged recording. "When we booked the tour last year, we were confident that we would have the new album out before the Summer. Turns out we were mistaken, as the album is taking longer than we thought," read the statement. In response, Geffen Records gave the band a July 31 deadline for the record amid concerns about the volatility of the band, and explained there would be penalties if the album was not turned it on time. DeLonge joked that, "We'll probably actually drive it to the (Geffen) president's house at two in the morning and hand it through his bedroom window at the last possible minute." In May, the band was still writing and recording, with DeLonge saying "We thought we were closing in on the end, and literally a week ago we pumped out a whole set of stuff that I think will be some of the best on the album." By the time of the July 31 deadline, the record was near completion and finally completed over August.
The record will be the first to be self-produced, due to the death of long-time producer Jerry Finn in 2008. Not only did Finn helm their last three studio albums, but he served as an invaluable member of the band: part adviser, part impartial observer, he helped smooth out tensions and hone their sound. "I honestly still feel like he’s in the studio with us, because for me, personally, everything that was about recording and being in a studio, I learned from Jerry," said Hoppus. Instead of a producer, each band member had their own dedicated sound engineer. DeLonge was against using a producer after self-producing most of his Angels & Airwaves records, described the band situation as "very democratic." The album sessions will be partially documented in The Blinkumentary. The recording and release of Neighborhoods was delayed multiple times. The recording's delay was due to the way the band chose to work — in bits and pieces, alone and together, in a pair of California studios — in addition to each member's busy schedules. In addition, Barker was releasing a solo record, DeLonge was involved in Angels & Airwaves, and Hoppus had to fly to New York City once a week to film his television show, Hoppus on Music. Hoppus attributed the album's delay to the band learning to work by themselves without Finn, and both DeLonge and Hoppus expressed frustration during the sessions at the band's cabal of publicists, managers and attorneys (which DeLonge described as "the absolute diarrhea of bureaucracy"). A result of the band's split was each members hiring his own attorney, and, during the sessions of Neighborhoods, the band had four managers. Hoppus moved to London with his family late in the recording process, also complicating matters.
. "Snake Charmer", initially titled "Genesis," as a reference to the Book of Genesis, is based on the Biblical story of Adam and Eve
. Hoppus wrote lyrics dealing with breakdowns in communication and trust and tackled with themes of isolation and confusion, but these lyrics were not specific to any of the band's history. "Kaleidoscope" was written about the album's lengthy recording process and the transformation of the band. Hoppus struggled with writing upbeat, happy songs for the album and attributed to dark lyricism to the heavy events occurring shortly before the reunion.
Pre-release, the album has been described by the band as ambitious, weird, and expansive. The music of the album was inspired by each musician's tastes: DeLonge's contributions bear hints of arena and stadium rock, Barker infuses hip hop
into his drum tracks, and Hoppus felt compelled by "weird indie rock
." Hoppus stated early on that a goal for the album was to try many new things, but to remain a catchy and "poppy
" sensibility. The lyricism of the album was influenced by heavy events in each member's lives during the latter part of the decade, elements considered dark by Hoppus. The band made sure to produce a few throwback songs recalling their sound in the "mid-90's." While Blink-182 had already begun evolving into deeper, darker pop territory on 2003' Blink-182, the reunited band were anxious to demonstrate new growth in a new decade, with DeLonge desiring not to lose the band's original angst-filled sound, a sound described by Rolling Stone as "frustration and fast, sunny hooks." Keeping the newer music connected to the band's history was Hoppus' main goal. Barker felt the album was the logical extension of everything done on Blink-182.
MTV News called Neighborhoods the "bleakest thing Blink have ever done, haunted by specters both real — depression
, addiction
, loss — and imagined," noting the constant lyrical mention of death
in many tracks. The album mixes the electronic flourishes of +44 and the "laser-light grandeur" of Angels & Airwaves into what MTV News called "a sound that recalls nothing so much as dark streets and black expanses, mostly of the suburban variety."
Expectations for Neighborhoods were described by Alternative Press as "truly gigantic, both within the music industry and the record-buying mainstream." MTV News
called Neighborhoods one of the most anticipated albums of 2010 when the album was scheduled for that year, and then again as one of the most anticipated rock albums of 2011. Kerrang!
also called it one of the most anticipated releases of 2011, and it was also featured on a list of Spin
"26 Fall Albums That Matter Most". On July 15, 2011, the album title and release date were announced. The album was tentatively set for a September 27 release, which the band was finally able to keep. The title Neighborhoods evolved out of the trio discovering that each bring a very different aesthetic to the band, each like different neighborhoods in a city. "Everybody in the world thinks of something unique unto themselves when they hear the word 'Neighborhoods'," said Hoppus. "To some it is a big city, others a small town, others suburbia, everything. The world is wide, exciting and very different. That's what Neighborhoods means to me." The album artwork for the record was revealed on August 4, featuring the band name written atop a city skyline. The same day, the band began streaming another new song, "Heart's All Gone", through a dedicated website. The second single from Neighborhoods, titled "After Midnight" premiered on BBC Radio 1 on September 6, 2011. The album leaked two weeks before its release, despite being under a very high level of security. Hoppus commented to NME
that he was surprised it took so long to leak and was relieved rather than annoyed that it had, reading warm comments about the album online.
Blink-182 returned to Interscope Records to distribute the album, but found the music industry landscape dramatically different since the band's last effort. "The label itself has no resources or capital to do what they used to," DeLonge said in an interview with Billboard. "They just have you locked up on a contract." Interscope, since the band's break-up, have greatly pared down its rock department, in contrast to other labels. Blink-182 broke up at a heightened popularity period for pop punk
, but the release of Neighborhoods is during a time for the genre that Billboard has described as "lacking exciting mainstream representation," in addition to falling sales for peer bands. The band approached sponsorships, song releases and social media incorporation during the rollout of Neighborhoods. Social media such as Facebook
and Twitter
were present throughout each stage of the album, which Hoppus believed allowed more direct access and control over the band's music. Although Modlife
, DeLonge's revenue-sharing online service, was not involved in the promotion of the record, the band's personal business projects were integrated, such as Macbeth Footwear
and Famous Stars and Straps
. Retailers such as Hot Topic
and Interpunk.com carried different-colored vinyl editions of Neighborhoods that include MP3 download cards. The band partnered with AT&T
in order to promote the album, appearing in a national spot for the HTC Status; the band also partnered with Best Buy
, which is selling a uniquely colored HTC Status preloaded with the band's music. Television ads through networks such as ESPN
will be explored the week of release. In addition, Hoppus and DeLonge appeared in a "film festival" for the fan montage video of "Up All Night", honoring various Internet fans through tongue-in-cheek
categories.
The Neighborhoods sleeve contains many names close to the band, including Chloe (DeLonge's pet Labrador Retriever
), Ava and Jon (DeLonge's daughter Ava Elizabeth and son Jonas Rocket), Jack (Hoppus' son), Landon, Alabama and Ati (Barker's son, daughter and step-daughter, Atiana), G! (Mike Giant, designer of the cover), and lastly, a memorial to DJ AM. In preparation of the deluxe edition, the band compiled ten tracks as well as three extras. The deluxe edition tracks are sequenced differently than the standard version.
Blink-182 first began touring in support of Neighborhoods with the 2011 Honda Civic Tour in August 2011. The 2011 tour marks the tenth anniversary of the tour, which Blink-182 headlined in its first incarnation. The band is co-headlining with My Chemical Romance
.
, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 70, based on 17 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews." A pre-release review from NME
called Neighborhoods the band's best album, calling it "bravely progressive" and noting the dark lyricism and random experimentation. James Montgomery of MTV News
called the "long-awaited, decidedly dark comeback album" a new transition for the band, calling Neighborhoods a "deep, dark, downright auto-biographical effort." AbsolutePunk staff writer Thomas Nassiff called Neighborhoods a "great record" while awarding a score of nine out of ten. He noted the albums "bleak and dark" lyricism, while describing the albums sound as containing elements of the trio's various side-projects, as well as a natural progression from their 2003 album. Dan Rankin of Blare Magazine
gave a favorable review and awarded Neighborhoods three and a half stars out of five. He noted that the several personal circumstances of the band prior to recording helped form "grittier and generally more somber lyrical content", while "instrumentally the album represents a fairly natural continuation of the sounds heard on the last LP. Even late into their thirties, they’re still very much the patron saints of angsty youths, but damned if they don’t have some poignant things to say that will resonate with more than just emotionally-stunted males." British rock magazine Kerrang awarded Neighborhoods a "good" three out of five score in their review. Critic Mark Sutherland noted that while "the finished product is inevitably disjointed, Blink emerge as a surprisingly serious rock proposition." He went on to add that, "While it occasionally sounds like Mark, Tom, and Travis are playing three different songs at once ('Kaleidoscope', 'After Midnight'), the band are still capable of producing genuine moments of magnificence."
Kyle Anderson of Entertainment Weekly
awarded the album a "B-" grade, opining that, "the peaks on Neighborhoods — their first disc in eight years — do little more than recall past triumphs. Outside of some latent goth leanings ('This Is Home') and a gauzy detour ('Ghost on the Dance Floor'), it's mostly twitch-crunch-whine-repeat." Michael Brown of Drowned in Sound
gave a mixed review, awarding the album a lukewarm five out of ten. He critiqued that, "Blink have the potential for much more than their past reputation may convey, but Neighborhoods is reminiscent of that first awkward conversation after a heated argument, as no-one's quite sure where to go next." Writing for Allmusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine
remarked that Neighborhoods is "a different beast than any of the cheerfully snotty early Blink-182 albums, as the band picks up the gloomy thread left hanging on its eponymous 2003 album ... yet it's far better to hear Blink-182 grapple with adolescent angst via the perspective of middle age than vainly attempting to re-create their youth. Perhaps Blink could stand to sharpen their words but it's better that they concentrated on their music, creating a fairly ridiculous yet mildly compelling prog-punk spin on the suburbs here." Scott Heisel of Alternative Press remarked that the album is "very good at times, and damn-near perfect at others. But it's not without its faults, either", praising the first four tracks as sounding "new and fresh, with some truly exciting musical ideas worked in" and complementing DeLonge and Hoppus' dual vocals on these tracks: "The interplay between the two humanizes both the record and the band themselves, since so much of Neighborhoods was recorded in separate times in separate studios." He was critical of some of the deluxe edition's bonus tracks, however, saying that Love Is Dangerous' wouldn't be up to par for Angels and Airwaves' worst album, and the Hoppus-fronted 'Fighting the Gravity' is the disc's biggest dud." He attributed the album's flaws to the lack of an outside producer and the fact that only a few tracks were written and recorded as a group: "Blink-182's members are still capable of writing good songs, but without a strong outside influence (i.e., a producer) and no real desire or effort to consistently work in the same room with one another, the amount of truly transcendent, classic material is minimal. Ultimately, Neighborhoods is a slightly awkward entry in the band's catalog that shows as much potential as it does flaws." Chad Grischow of IGN
called Neighborhoods a "startlingly great rock album" in which the band "hits an artistic growth spurt", summarizing it as "the most mature, rewarding, and best album of their career." Tom Goodwyn of NME
remarked that it finds the band "completely at ease with its past and confident enough to acknowledge their early work, with nods on the album to moments from their whole back catalogue."
Jon Dolan of Rolling Stone
gave the album three stars out of five, noting elements of sophistication, introspection, and darkness in the music and lyrics and commenting that "Some Clinton-era pants-dropping might've been a fun nostalgia move. But those days are gone; it's their early-2010s nightmare as much as anyone else's." Kyle Ryan of The A.V. Club
noted that the tragedies surrounding the band's reunion heavily informed Neighborhoods, remarking that it "plays less like a joyful reunion album and more like a darker continuation of 2003's atmospheric Blink-182." He was critical of DeLonge's vocals, saying that he "sounds flat as ever, and has a fondness for clunky lyrics", concluding that "Although Blink-182 has long since left its past as a bare-bones punk band behind, overwrought rock isn't its forte, either. Neighborhoods finds a nice balance between the two, but it could still use a little less fussiness."
Additional musicians
Production
Artwork
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by the American pop punk
Pop punk
Pop punk is a fusion music genre that combines elements of punk rock with pop music, to varying degrees. Allmusic describes the genre as a strand of alternative rock, which typically merges pop melodies with speedy punk tempos, chord changes and loud guitars...
band Blink-182
Blink-182
Blink-182 is an American rock band consisting of vocalist and bass guitarist Mark Hoppus, vocalist and guitarist Tom DeLonge, and drummer Travis Barker. They have sold over 27 million albums worldwide since forming in Poway, California in 1992...
, released September 27, 2011 through DGC Records
DGC Records
DGC Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and currently operates as an auxiliary label of Interscope Records.-Company history:...
and Interscope Records
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...
. Their first album of new material in eight years, its recording followed the band's 2009 reunion after a four-year hiatus. Due to conflicts within the trio, the band entered an "indefinite hiatus" in 2005 and the members explored various side-projects. After two separate tragedies regarding the band and their entourage, the members of the band decided to reunite in late 2008, with plans for a new album and tour. It is the first Blink-182 album produced by the band members without the help of an outside record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
.
The band's studio autonomy, tours, managers and personal projects stalled the recording process, which lasted from shortly after the band's February 2009 reunion to July 2011. The band developed Neighborhoods in separate studios and regrouped at various periods to record. The band's numerous delays in the recording process resulted in the band canceling a European tour and the label setting a deadline for the album to be due. The band explored many experimental recording techniques during the sessions but set a goal to maintain a pop sensibility. The trio wrote dark lyrics regarding such subjects as isolation, confusion and death. The band infused inspiration from each member's various musical tastes to form a unique sound that recalled their separate upbringings, leading the trio to compare the album to separate neighborhoods.
The first single from Neighborhoods, "Up All Night
Up All Night (Blink-182 song)
"Up All Night" is a song by the American pop punk band Blink-182, taken from their sixth studio album Neighborhoods . The song premiered on July 14, 2011, and was released digitally the next day...
", premiered on July 15, 2011, while the second, "After Midnight", followed on September 6, 2011. The album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
with 151,000 copies sold in its first week, falling to No. 10 with 31,000 scans in its second week.
Background
Blink-182 announced on February 22, 2005 that they would be going on an "indefinite hiatus". Tensions began to arise in late 2004 between the band members as guitarist Tom DeLongeTom DeLonge
Thomas Matthew "Tom" DeLonge, Jr. is an American rock musician. He is the guitarist and one of the two lead vocalists for the American pop punk band Blink-182 as well as the guitarist and lead vocalist for the alternative band Angels & Airwaves...
expressed his desire to cancel an upcoming tour and enter a half-year respite from touring. At a band meeting which coincided with the beginning of Blink-182's final European tour in December, DeLonge expressed his desire to spend more time with his family. He also declined recording a new album. During the band's six-month break, bassist Mark Hoppus
Mark Hoppus
Mark Allan Hoppus is an American musician, record producer, and television host. He is the bass guitarist and one of the two lead vocalists of the pop punk band Blink-182, as well as the bass guitarist and lead vocalist of the alternative rock band +44. He is a co-founder of both bands...
expressed his desire for the band to perform at Music for Relief
Music for Relief
Music For Relief is a charity founded by the band Linkin Park. The goal is to provide relief to victims of natural disasters and to bring awareness to global warming.-About:...
's Concert for South Asia, a benefit show to aid victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea megathrust earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on Sunday, December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake itself is known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake...
. DeLonge agreed to perform, and the band subsequently began rehearsing for the event in February 2005. Further tensions, however, arose between the band members during rehearsals, and they began arguing about a variety of issues, such as the band's "forced" break. Manager Rick DeVoe phoned Hoppus and drummer Travis Barker
Travis Barker
Travis Landon Barker is an American musician, producer and entrepreneur, most noted as the drummer for the American pop punk band Blink-182, as well as the alternative rock band +44, the rap rock band The Transplants, and the alternative rock band Box Car Racer. He was a frequent collaborator with...
, who were waiting in the rehearsal space for DeLonge, the following day to tell them that DeLonge had quit the band, stating: "As of today, Tom DeLonge is no longer a member of Blink-182." Jordan Schur, the former president of Geffen Records, reportedly told Barker: "any press you do, make sure you say everything is cool," opting to instead issue a statement calling the band's break-up an 'indefinite hiatus'. During the hiatus, DeLonge formed rock band Angels & Airwaves
Angels & Airwaves
Angels & Airwaves is an American alternative rock supergroup led by Blink-182 guitarist/vocalist Tom DeLonge, also including guitarist David Kennedy from Over My Dead Body, Hazen Street and Box Car Racer, bass guitarist Matt Wachter from 30 Seconds to Mars and former Lostprophets and Nine Inch...
while Barker and Hoppus continued playing together in +44
+44 (band)
+44 was an alternative rock band formed by Blink-182 members Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker...
.
In June 2008, DeLonge told Spinner.com
Spinner.com
Spinner is an AOL Music property, which bills itself as "the ultimate music blog for free MP3s, free CD listening, [and] discovering new artists."...
he had "no desire to go back and play in Blink-182 again." In July 2008, former Blink-182 producer Jerry Finn
Jerry Finn
Jerry Finn was an American record producer. He was perhaps best known for his work with Blink-182, as well as Morrissey, AFI, Bad Religion, Alkaline Trio, MxPx, Rancid, Green Day, Sum 41 and The Offspring.-Death:...
, who had produced every Blink record since Enema of the State
Enema of the State
Enema of the State is the third studio album by American pop punk band Blink-182. Recorded at various locations throughout California with producer Jerry Finn, the album was first released on June 1, 1999 in the United States on MCA Records...
(as well as +44's debut, When Your Heart Stops Beating
When Your Heart Stops Beating
When Your Heart Stops Beating is the debut studio album by American alternative rock band +44. Produced by Jerry Finn, the album was released November 13, 2006 through Interscope Records...
), suffered a cerebral hemorrhage. In August, he was taken off life support and died on August 21. Hoppus took to his blog, HiMyNameisMark, to express his feelings: "I feel blessed to have worked with and learned so much from him. But most of all, I am honored to call him my dear friend. Jerry, I miss you already." On September 19, Barker and collaborator Adam Goldstein
Adam Goldstein
Adam Michael Goldstein was an American DJ, remixer, record producer and musician better known as DJ AM. Goldstein was a member of the rock band Crazy Town, co-owner of a management company called Deckstar and worked on albums for Papa Roach, Madonna and Will Smith, among others...
(aka DJ AM), were involved in a plane crash that killed four people, leaving Barker and Goldstein the only survivors. The accident resulted in sixteen surgeries, 48-hour blood transfusion
Blood transfusion
Blood transfusion is the process of receiving blood products into one's circulation intravenously. Transfusions are used in a variety of medical conditions to replace lost components of the blood...
s and Barker developing post-traumatic stress disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Posttraumaticstress disorder is a severe anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to any event that results in psychological trauma. This event may involve the threat of death to oneself or to someone else, or to one's own or someone else's physical, sexual, or psychological integrity,...
.
Immediately the two cataclysmic incidents raised rumors of a possible Blink-182 reunion. Hoppus was alerted about Barker's accident by a phone call in the middle of the night and jumped on the next flight to the burn center. DeLonge found out via the TV news at an airport while waiting to board a flight. He landed and mailed a letter and two photographs to Barker: a photo of Blink aboard a submarine in the Middle East and another of himself and his two kids. "One was 'Do you remember who we were?' and the other was 'This is who I am now,' " DeLonge says. "It was a good moment to put the shit aside." DeLonge also commented that, no matter what happened between himself and Barker in the past, "none of it matters when it comes down to somebody getting hurt." Hoppus's web site and MySpace page were not updated since the day before news of the accident broke, but he finally took to his blog on November 18 to express his feelings, saying that he "hadn't had it in him" to post, adding that "these past two months have been the hardest times I can remember." He also revealed that he, DeLonge, and Barker had all spoken in the aftermath. Barker quashed the rumors in December, but noted that they had been getting along.
Talk of a reunion commenced weeks after the trio began speaking again. After a two-hour phone conversation between DeLonge and Hoppus, an arrangement was made for the trio to meet up at Hoppus and Barker's Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
studio in October 2008. DeLonge was the first to approach the subject of reuniting. The trio had, in Hoppus's words, "two gnarly heart-to-hearts," during which the three opened up. "Tom had just kind of come out to Los Angeles for the day," recalled Hoppus, "I remember he said, 'So, what do you guys think? Where are your heads at?' And I said, 'I think we should continue with what we've been doing for the past 17 years. I think we should get back on the road and back in the studio and do what we love doing.'" Hoppus stated in January 2009, in reference to a reunion, that "the future is wide open," although fans were initially skeptical. Eventually, the band appeared for the first time on stage together in nearly five years as presenters at the 51st Grammy Awards
51st Grammy Awards
The 51st Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA on February 8, 2009. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss were the biggest winners of the night, jointly winning five awards including Album of the Year and Record of the Year...
on February 8. Barker said, "We used to play music together, and we decided we're going to play music together again," and Hoppus yelled, "Blink-182 is back!" The band's official website was updated with a statement: "To put it simply, We're back. We mean, really back. Picking up where we left off and then some. In the studio writing and recording a new album. Preparing to tour the world yet again. Friendships reformed. 17 years deep in our legacy."
Recording and production
The band began recording demos of new material in 2009. All three members brought song ideas that they would end up working on for years. As the band got back together, Barker said that the trio immediately "got inspired" by practicing their old songs and listening to them again, and they decided to record demos. There were four demos done, and only one was near completion, "Up All NightUp All Night (Blink-182 song)
"Up All Night" is a song by the American pop punk band Blink-182, taken from their sixth studio album Neighborhoods . The song premiered on July 14, 2011, and was released digitally the next day...
". The trio wanted to release it as a single then, but quickly they realized that it was too ambitious to complete it before their reunion tour
Blink-182 Reunion Tour
Blink-182 in Concert was the tenth concert tour by American pop punk band Blink-182. It is the band's first tour since their hiatus in 2004. Bandmember Mark Hoppus jokingly referred to the tour as One Way Ticket to Boneville, a name they got from a fan on a KROQ interview...
began in July. Sessions were stalled by the summer 2009 reunion tour, during which the band reconnected musically and emotionally. During the tour, Barker got the phone call that DJ AM had overdosed and died in New York, which heavily affected him. The band did a large amount of writing before leaving on tour, but upon completion of the tour, they took time off to "take a couple of months and chill and do other stuff," with intentions to regroup in 2010. DeLonge learned during the recording process, in his own words, to "let go and be okay with not being able to control everything." Although the three musicians were at first rarely in the same room while recording, opting to work on their parts individually, DeLonge asserted that the method of recording was a more efficient way of working considering the schedules, not due to a lack of unity within the band. In addition to the tragedy regarding DJ AM, DeLonge was diagnosed with skin cancer during 2010, but it eventually was cleared.
The album was recorded at both DeLonge's studio in San Diego and in Los Angeles by Hoppus and Barker. Recording in separate studios was DeLonge's idea, and ideas were exchanged via e-mail. Various engineers met up in person to trade files on hard drives. In June and July 2010, the band spent time at their rehearsal spot, writing and recording new songs. The band intended to wrap up touring by September, and stay in the studio for the rest of the year until the album was finished. In early 2011, Barker left for a tour in support of the release of his solo album, while DeLonge and Hoppus continued to work at their separate studios. Under pressure, the band released a statement in April that effectively rescheduled all European tour dates due to the album's prolonged recording. "When we booked the tour last year, we were confident that we would have the new album out before the Summer. Turns out we were mistaken, as the album is taking longer than we thought," read the statement. In response, Geffen Records gave the band a July 31 deadline for the record amid concerns about the volatility of the band, and explained there would be penalties if the album was not turned it on time. DeLonge joked that, "We'll probably actually drive it to the (Geffen) president's house at two in the morning and hand it through his bedroom window at the last possible minute." In May, the band was still writing and recording, with DeLonge saying "We thought we were closing in on the end, and literally a week ago we pumped out a whole set of stuff that I think will be some of the best on the album." By the time of the July 31 deadline, the record was near completion and finally completed over August.
The record will be the first to be self-produced, due to the death of long-time producer Jerry Finn in 2008. Not only did Finn helm their last three studio albums, but he served as an invaluable member of the band: part adviser, part impartial observer, he helped smooth out tensions and hone their sound. "I honestly still feel like he’s in the studio with us, because for me, personally, everything that was about recording and being in a studio, I learned from Jerry," said Hoppus. Instead of a producer, each band member had their own dedicated sound engineer. DeLonge was against using a producer after self-producing most of his Angels & Airwaves records, described the band situation as "very democratic." The album sessions will be partially documented in The Blinkumentary. The recording and release of Neighborhoods was delayed multiple times. The recording's delay was due to the way the band chose to work — in bits and pieces, alone and together, in a pair of California studios — in addition to each member's busy schedules. In addition, Barker was releasing a solo record, DeLonge was involved in Angels & Airwaves, and Hoppus had to fly to New York City once a week to film his television show, Hoppus on Music. Hoppus attributed the album's delay to the band learning to work by themselves without Finn, and both DeLonge and Hoppus expressed frustration during the sessions at the band's cabal of publicists, managers and attorneys (which DeLonge described as "the absolute diarrhea of bureaucracy"). A result of the band's split was each members hiring his own attorney, and, during the sessions of Neighborhoods, the band had four managers. Hoppus moved to London with his family late in the recording process, also complicating matters.
Composition
"Ghost on the Dance Floor" is specifically about "hearing a song you shared with someone that's passed." The track resonated with Barker, who called DeLonge one night because the song affected him while listening to it, because of the death of DJ AM. "After Midnight" was one of four new songs birthed from a last-minute writing session after the band canceled their European tour. Barker's favorite track (and originally titled "Travis Beat") was written in separate studios but composed and recorded together. "MH 4.18.2011" was originally titled "Hold On", but DeLonge thought the new title sounded cool, likening it to a virusVirus
A virus is a small infectious agent that can replicate only inside the living cells of organisms. Viruses infect all types of organisms, from animals and plants to bacteria and archaea...
. "Snake Charmer", initially titled "Genesis," as a reference to the Book of Genesis, is based on the Biblical story of Adam and Eve
Adam and Eve
Adam and Eve were, according to the Genesis creation narratives, the first human couple to inhabit Earth, created by YHWH, the God of the ancient Hebrews...
. Hoppus wrote lyrics dealing with breakdowns in communication and trust and tackled with themes of isolation and confusion, but these lyrics were not specific to any of the band's history. "Kaleidoscope" was written about the album's lengthy recording process and the transformation of the band. Hoppus struggled with writing upbeat, happy songs for the album and attributed to dark lyricism to the heavy events occurring shortly before the reunion.
Pre-release, the album has been described by the band as ambitious, weird, and expansive. The music of the album was inspired by each musician's tastes: DeLonge's contributions bear hints of arena and stadium rock, Barker infuses hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
into his drum tracks, and Hoppus felt compelled by "weird indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
." Hoppus stated early on that a goal for the album was to try many new things, but to remain a catchy and "poppy
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
" sensibility. The lyricism of the album was influenced by heavy events in each member's lives during the latter part of the decade, elements considered dark by Hoppus. The band made sure to produce a few throwback songs recalling their sound in the "mid-90's." While Blink-182 had already begun evolving into deeper, darker pop territory on 2003' Blink-182, the reunited band were anxious to demonstrate new growth in a new decade, with DeLonge desiring not to lose the band's original angst-filled sound, a sound described by Rolling Stone as "frustration and fast, sunny hooks." Keeping the newer music connected to the band's history was Hoppus' main goal. Barker felt the album was the logical extension of everything done on Blink-182.
MTV News called Neighborhoods the "bleakest thing Blink have ever done, haunted by specters both real — depression
Depression (mood)
Depression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity that can affect a person's thoughts, behaviour, feelings and physical well-being. Depressed people may feel sad, anxious, empty, hopeless, helpless, worthless, guilty, irritable, or restless...
, addiction
Addiction
Historically, addiction has been defined as physical and psychological dependence on psychoactive substances which cross the blood-brain barrier once ingested, temporarily altering the chemical milieu of the brain.Addiction can also be viewed as a continued involvement with a substance or activity...
, loss — and imagined," noting the constant lyrical mention of death
Death
Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
in many tracks. The album mixes the electronic flourishes of +44 and the "laser-light grandeur" of Angels & Airwaves into what MTV News called "a sound that recalls nothing so much as dark streets and black expanses, mostly of the suburban variety."
Release and promotion
Expectations for Neighborhoods were described by Alternative Press as "truly gigantic, both within the music industry and the record-buying mainstream." MTV News
MTV News
MTV News is the news division of MTV, one of the first and most popular music television network in the U.S., as well as some of MTV's related channels around the world. MTV News began in the late 1980s with the program The Week In Rock, hosted by Kurt Loder, the first official MTV News correspondent...
called Neighborhoods one of the most anticipated albums of 2010 when the album was scheduled for that year, and then again as one of the most anticipated rock albums of 2011. Kerrang!
Kerrang!
Kerrang! is a UK-based magazine devoted to rock music published by Bauer Media Group. It was first published on June 6, 1981 as a one-off supplement in the Sounds newspaper...
also called it one of the most anticipated releases of 2011, and it was also featured on a list of Spin
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
"26 Fall Albums That Matter Most". On July 15, 2011, the album title and release date were announced. The album was tentatively set for a September 27 release, which the band was finally able to keep. The title Neighborhoods evolved out of the trio discovering that each bring a very different aesthetic to the band, each like different neighborhoods in a city. "Everybody in the world thinks of something unique unto themselves when they hear the word 'Neighborhoods'," said Hoppus. "To some it is a big city, others a small town, others suburbia, everything. The world is wide, exciting and very different. That's what Neighborhoods means to me." The album artwork for the record was revealed on August 4, featuring the band name written atop a city skyline. The same day, the band began streaming another new song, "Heart's All Gone", through a dedicated website. The second single from Neighborhoods, titled "After Midnight" premiered on BBC Radio 1 on September 6, 2011. The album leaked two weeks before its release, despite being under a very high level of security. Hoppus commented to NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
that he was surprised it took so long to leak and was relieved rather than annoyed that it had, reading warm comments about the album online.
Blink-182 returned to Interscope Records to distribute the album, but found the music industry landscape dramatically different since the band's last effort. "The label itself has no resources or capital to do what they used to," DeLonge said in an interview with Billboard. "They just have you locked up on a contract." Interscope, since the band's break-up, have greatly pared down its rock department, in contrast to other labels. Blink-182 broke up at a heightened popularity period for pop punk
Pop punk
Pop punk is a fusion music genre that combines elements of punk rock with pop music, to varying degrees. Allmusic describes the genre as a strand of alternative rock, which typically merges pop melodies with speedy punk tempos, chord changes and loud guitars...
, but the release of Neighborhoods is during a time for the genre that Billboard has described as "lacking exciting mainstream representation," in addition to falling sales for peer bands. The band approached sponsorships, song releases and social media incorporation during the rollout of Neighborhoods. Social media such as Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
and Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
were present throughout each stage of the album, which Hoppus believed allowed more direct access and control over the band's music. Although Modlife
Modlife
Modlife is a website that connects fans with bands, artists and personalities using live video broadcasts, text messaging, video blogs, mobile updating and twitter feeds. Modlife's goal is to reward loyal fans and to create a new revenue stream for content creators through a high level of...
, DeLonge's revenue-sharing online service, was not involved in the promotion of the record, the band's personal business projects were integrated, such as Macbeth Footwear
Macbeth Footwear
Macbeth Footwear is a Southern Californian brand of footwear, apparel and accessories, including vegan and organic products. One of its founders is Tom DeLonge, member of the bands Blink-182 and Angels & Airwaves.- History :...
and Famous Stars and Straps
Famous Stars and Straps
Famous Stars and Straps is an American clothing and accessory line created by Travis Barker on December 8, 1999, best known for being the drummer in the band blink-182...
. Retailers such as Hot Topic
Hot Topic
Hot Topic is an American retail chain specializing in music and pop culture-related clothing and accessories, as well as licensed music on CD. The majority of the stores are located in regional shopping malls. The first Hot Topic store was opened in 1988 by Orv Madden, who retired as CEO in 2000...
and Interpunk.com carried different-colored vinyl editions of Neighborhoods that include MP3 download cards. The band partnered with AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
in order to promote the album, appearing in a national spot for the HTC Status; the band also partnered with Best Buy
Best Buy
Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American specialty retailer of consumer electronics in the United States, accounting for 19% of the market. It also operates in Mexico, Canada & China. The company's subsidiaries include Geek Squad, CinemaNow, Magnolia Audio Video, Pacific Sales, and, in Canada operates...
, which is selling a uniquely colored HTC Status preloaded with the band's music. Television ads through networks such as ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
will be explored the week of release. In addition, Hoppus and DeLonge appeared in a "film festival" for the fan montage video of "Up All Night", honoring various Internet fans through tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek is a phrase used as a figure of speech to imply that a statement or other production is humorously intended and it should not be taken at face value. The facial expression typically indicates that one is joking or making a mental effort. In the past, it may also have indicated...
categories.
The Neighborhoods sleeve contains many names close to the band, including Chloe (DeLonge's pet Labrador Retriever
Labrador Retriever
The Labrador Retriever is one of several kinds of retriever, a type of gun dog. A breed characteristic is webbed paws for swimming, useful for the breed's original purpose of retrieving fishing nets. The Labrador is the most popular breed of dog by registered ownership in Canada, the United...
), Ava and Jon (DeLonge's daughter Ava Elizabeth and son Jonas Rocket), Jack (Hoppus' son), Landon, Alabama and Ati (Barker's son, daughter and step-daughter, Atiana), G! (Mike Giant, designer of the cover), and lastly, a memorial to DJ AM. In preparation of the deluxe edition, the band compiled ten tracks as well as three extras. The deluxe edition tracks are sequenced differently than the standard version.
Blink-182 first began touring in support of Neighborhoods with the 2011 Honda Civic Tour in August 2011. The 2011 tour marks the tenth anniversary of the tour, which Blink-182 headlined in its first incarnation. The band is co-headlining with My Chemical Romance
My Chemical Romance
My Chemical Romance is an American alternative rock band from New Jersey, formed in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist Gerard Way, guitarists Ray Toro and Frank Iero, and bassist Mikey Way and have a diverse sound incorporating elements of punk, emo, glam metal, and progressive rock...
.
Critical response
Neighborhoods was met with mostly positive feedback from music critics. At MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 70, based on 17 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews." A pre-release review from NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
called Neighborhoods the band's best album, calling it "bravely progressive" and noting the dark lyricism and random experimentation. James Montgomery of MTV News
MTV News
MTV News is the news division of MTV, one of the first and most popular music television network in the U.S., as well as some of MTV's related channels around the world. MTV News began in the late 1980s with the program The Week In Rock, hosted by Kurt Loder, the first official MTV News correspondent...
called the "long-awaited, decidedly dark comeback album" a new transition for the band, calling Neighborhoods a "deep, dark, downright auto-biographical effort." AbsolutePunk staff writer Thomas Nassiff called Neighborhoods a "great record" while awarding a score of nine out of ten. He noted the albums "bleak and dark" lyricism, while describing the albums sound as containing elements of the trio's various side-projects, as well as a natural progression from their 2003 album. Dan Rankin of Blare Magazine
BLARE Magazine
BLARE Magazine, usually known simply as BLARE, is a Toronto-based daily Internet publication devoted to artist interviews, music commentary and supporting unsigned/emerging musicians from Canada, the United States and other countries...
gave a favorable review and awarded Neighborhoods three and a half stars out of five. He noted that the several personal circumstances of the band prior to recording helped form "grittier and generally more somber lyrical content", while "instrumentally the album represents a fairly natural continuation of the sounds heard on the last LP. Even late into their thirties, they’re still very much the patron saints of angsty youths, but damned if they don’t have some poignant things to say that will resonate with more than just emotionally-stunted males." British rock magazine Kerrang awarded Neighborhoods a "good" three out of five score in their review. Critic Mark Sutherland noted that while "the finished product is inevitably disjointed, Blink emerge as a surprisingly serious rock proposition." He went on to add that, "While it occasionally sounds like Mark, Tom, and Travis are playing three different songs at once ('Kaleidoscope', 'After Midnight'), the band are still capable of producing genuine moments of magnificence."
Kyle Anderson of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
awarded the album a "B-" grade, opining that, "the peaks on Neighborhoods — their first disc in eight years — do little more than recall past triumphs. Outside of some latent goth leanings ('This Is Home') and a gauzy detour ('Ghost on the Dance Floor'), it's mostly twitch-crunch-whine-repeat." Michael Brown of Drowned in Sound
Drowned in Sound
DrownedinSound.com or DiS is a UK based music webzine financed by artist management company Silentway . The site is an editorially independent music website.-History:...
gave a mixed review, awarding the album a lukewarm five out of ten. He critiqued that, "Blink have the potential for much more than their past reputation may convey, but Neighborhoods is reminiscent of that first awkward conversation after a heated argument, as no-one's quite sure where to go next." Writing for Allmusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
remarked that Neighborhoods is "a different beast than any of the cheerfully snotty early Blink-182 albums, as the band picks up the gloomy thread left hanging on its eponymous 2003 album ... yet it's far better to hear Blink-182 grapple with adolescent angst via the perspective of middle age than vainly attempting to re-create their youth. Perhaps Blink could stand to sharpen their words but it's better that they concentrated on their music, creating a fairly ridiculous yet mildly compelling prog-punk spin on the suburbs here." Scott Heisel of Alternative Press remarked that the album is "very good at times, and damn-near perfect at others. But it's not without its faults, either", praising the first four tracks as sounding "new and fresh, with some truly exciting musical ideas worked in" and complementing DeLonge and Hoppus' dual vocals on these tracks: "The interplay between the two humanizes both the record and the band themselves, since so much of Neighborhoods was recorded in separate times in separate studios." He was critical of some of the deluxe edition's bonus tracks, however, saying that Love Is Dangerous' wouldn't be up to par for Angels and Airwaves' worst album, and the Hoppus-fronted 'Fighting the Gravity' is the disc's biggest dud." He attributed the album's flaws to the lack of an outside producer and the fact that only a few tracks were written and recorded as a group: "Blink-182's members are still capable of writing good songs, but without a strong outside influence (i.e., a producer) and no real desire or effort to consistently work in the same room with one another, the amount of truly transcendent, classic material is minimal. Ultimately, Neighborhoods is a slightly awkward entry in the band's catalog that shows as much potential as it does flaws." Chad Grischow of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
called Neighborhoods a "startlingly great rock album" in which the band "hits an artistic growth spurt", summarizing it as "the most mature, rewarding, and best album of their career." Tom Goodwyn of NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
remarked that it finds the band "completely at ease with its past and confident enough to acknowledge their early work, with nods on the album to moments from their whole back catalogue."
Jon Dolan of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
gave the album three stars out of five, noting elements of sophistication, introspection, and darkness in the music and lyrics and commenting that "Some Clinton-era pants-dropping might've been a fun nostalgia move. But those days are gone; it's their early-2010s nightmare as much as anyone else's." Kyle Ryan of The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
noted that the tragedies surrounding the band's reunion heavily informed Neighborhoods, remarking that it "plays less like a joyful reunion album and more like a darker continuation of 2003's atmospheric Blink-182." He was critical of DeLonge's vocals, saying that he "sounds flat as ever, and has a fondness for clunky lyrics", concluding that "Although Blink-182 has long since left its past as a bare-bones punk band behind, overwrought rock isn't its forte, either. Neighborhoods finds a nice balance between the two, but it could still use a little less fussiness."
Track listing
Chart positions
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
2 |
| Austrian Albums Chart Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
7 |
| Belgian Albums Chart | 21 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
2 |
| Dutch Albums Chart | 58 |
| French Albums Chart | 33 |
| German Albums Chart | 6 |
| Irish Albums Chart Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically... |
12 |
| Italian Albums Chart | 11 |
| Mexican Albums Chart AMPROFON Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas is a non-profit organization integrated by multinational and national record companies in Mexico. Established on April 3, 1963, it groups phonographic companies that represent more than 70 percent of the market in Mexico... |
15 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart | 3 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
26 |
| Spain Albums Chart PROMUSICAE Spanish Music Producers is a trade group representing the Spanish recording industry... |
31 |
| Swedish Albums Chart | 32 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 11 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
6 |
| UK Rock Chart UK Rock Chart The UK Rock Chart usually refers to the Top 40 Rock Singles and the Top 40 Rock Albums Chart compiled by the Official Charts Company from physical record sales in British retail outlets with larger than average genrespecific sales.... |
1 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
2 |
| U.S. Alternative Albums | 1 |
| U.S. Rock Albums | 1 |
Certifications
| Country | Certification | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956... |
Gold | 35,000+ |
Personnel
Blink-182- Mark HoppusMark HoppusMark Allan Hoppus is an American musician, record producer, and television host. He is the bass guitarist and one of the two lead vocalists of the pop punk band Blink-182, as well as the bass guitarist and lead vocalist of the alternative rock band +44. He is a co-founder of both bands...
– vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music... - Tom DeLongeTom DeLongeThomas Matthew "Tom" DeLonge, Jr. is an American rock musician. He is the guitarist and one of the two lead vocalists for the American pop punk band Blink-182 as well as the guitarist and lead vocalist for the alternative band Angels & Airwaves...
– vocals, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, producer - Travis BarkerTravis BarkerTravis Landon Barker is an American musician, producer and entrepreneur, most noted as the drummer for the American pop punk band Blink-182, as well as the alternative rock band +44, the rap rock band The Transplants, and the alternative rock band Box Car Racer. He was a frequent collaborator with...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
, producer
Additional musicians
- Roger Joseph Manning Jr.Roger Joseph Manning Jr.Roger Joseph Manning, Jr. is an American keyboard player and founding member of bands Jellyfish, Imperial Drag, The Moog Cookbook, and TV Eyes. He has also spent several years as an integral member of Beck's backing band, and made contributions to several recordings by the band Air. He is...
– keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
Production
- Neal Avron – mix engineer
- "Critter" – co-producer
- Paul Frye – assistant recording engineer
- Femio Hernández – assistant recording engineer
- Chris Holmes – co-producer, mix engineer
- James Ingram – recording engineer, additional engineering
- Paul LaMalfa – assistant recording engineer
- Tom Lord-Alge – mix engineer
- Andy Wallace – mix engineer
Artwork
- Mike Giant – illustrations
- Estevan Oriol – photography
- Liam Ward – layout and design