Is Pop-Punk Dead?

For the second time, DeLonge (left) has left Blink-182 indefinitely. Image from fanart.tv

Last week it was announced that Tom DeLonge, founding member and guitarist of the pop-punk powerhouse Blink-182, has left the band. This leaves the future of the group somewhat on the rocks – but that’s pretty much as far as the facts go. Nobody is quite sure whether he was kicked out by bassist Mark Hoppus and drummer Travis Barker, or whether he left of his own accord.

Thus the squabbling and confusion begins.

Each side has fired insults and issued statements about the other’s actions over the past few years. It has become obvious to the fans that the band have barely been on speaking terms since their reunion, which has led to this vile situation.

This begs the question: Is Blink-182 dead? Has pop-punk partied for the last time? Are the days of angsty teenage bands filling arenas a thing of the past?

The answer to all these questions is no. Hoppus and Barker have released a statement confirming that Blink-182 are continuing on without DeLonge as a member. Instead, concerts such as Barker’s own Musink festival in California have been announced with Alkaline Trio’s Matt Skiba filling in DeLonge’s position. Blink-182 lives on without Tom – and so does the pop-punk genre.

Any serious fan of the genre would probably confess that they started out as a Blink-182 fan. They would also admit that Blink-182 are owed a significant amount of plaudits for their contribution to the genre, as they were unarguably seminal in its creation. However, if they are a committed a fan of the genre they will be able to list at least a dozen records from more contemporary pop-punk bands – such as The Story So Far, The Wonder Years and Title Fight – which are far superior to Blink-182’s last album offering, the lukewarm ‘Neighborhoods’.

The genre continues to develop year on year with new acts gaining increasing popularity, such as The Sidekicks, Roam and As It Is. The weight of the pop-punk genre is evident in ticket sales for You Me At Six and All Time Low’s joint headline tour, which is currently selling out the biggest venues in the country. Slam Dunk Festival, the UK’s leading pop-punk festival, has been expanding in order to accommodate new fans. The scene is busier than ever.

Can pop-punk carry on without the bands that made it successful? Yes. I’ve seen blink-182 twice since they reunited in 2009 and on both occasions their performances have pretty shaky. The fractures within the band have been evident in their lacklustre shows. The band that everyone knew and loved has all but disappeared. They should call it quits before they become a constant nostalgia act. Good Riddance as they say… or is that some other band?