{
  "$type": "site.standard.document",
  "description": "One of the better music memoirs/autobiographies I've read recently and — perhaps — credit should be due to Dan Ozzi for that (at least in part). I've got distinct memories of Mark, Tom and Travis soundtracking middle school into my high school years and beyond. My interest waxed and waned, but they were a formative band for me. They were Bob Dylan to me if Bob Dylan spent more time writing dick and fart jokes. Where to start with this one — hell, I don't know where to start. A lot of this I knew from having followed the band for over 20 years now, a fair bit I didn't and all of it I loved hearing retold by Mark. Mark and Tom both shared in familial dysfunction (Travis did too, but he enters the picture later) and that dysfunction hits. It does. Mark's parents tried (his mom was an incredible supporter of him and the band), but it still has an impact. Behavior changes, aimlessness takes hold and we find our heroes in the garage of Tom's family home after an introduction by Mark's sister. Carousel is written and an awkward run towards fame ensues. I loved this. I'm biased by sentimentality and fandom, but I loved this book. I didn't love Travis Barker's Can I Say — I liked that one. I liked it, but it didn't hit the same. Funny story — we saw Travis in the VIP area of a Kanye West show on his tour for The Life of Pablo (long story — not really) and my wife was brave enough to walk up to him, tell him how much his music meant to her and to say thank you for all of it. He listened, gave her a big hug and said thank you. Nice guy. This one hit the hardest because Mark has always been blink's anchor, or at least that's how I see him. It's Mark, Tom and Travis but Mark has always felt like that core, foundational piece. I loved the Matt Skiba albums, they were fun, flawed, but fun as hell (and the only lineup I've seen live). The way he hopped in to fill Tom's shoes and gracefully bowed out when Tom returns speaks to him as a musician, person, fan and friend. I'm glad he had a part in the band. Oh yeah! Mark — +44 was a gem, but very much blink without Tom. Box Car Racer is a treasure too, but the latter caused tension and the former was result of a fracture. Much of this was caused by or attributable to Tom. Is that fair? I don't know — life is hard, friendships are hard and I'm sure it all gets harder when you're in a massively successful band that's all bound up in a core, 3-person lineup. You throw together a song in a garage, you play shows, you record, you fight to get onto the main stage at a hometown venue, you get championed, punked and mentored by legendary acts like Pennywise. You lose a drummer, pick up a new one, drop out of college and do hellish van tours. You make it on Warped Tour, grind through that and write a track like Dammit — hold on while I go listen to that again. I could go on and on and on about this book and this band. Everyone has those bands that are formative for them and their interest in music. blink was and will always be one of those bands for me. I love every single one of their albums and songs for different reasons. Remember getting money to buy a CD? You'd pop it in the player and study the damn thing — you'll get money for another one, but you spent what you had on this one and dammit this one was worth it. If you don't get it on the first listen it'll grow on you by the 10th and then it's burned into your brain. It's not one trick on a playlist where you hit the heart button and skip to the next. Fuck, I'm old. Fuck, this band is older. I'm glad they're back, I'm devastated it took Mark navigating cancer and Travis surviving a plane crash. Be grateful they're back. The new album is fun as hell — it's catchy, touching and childish. Take it for what it is and celebrate it because you love the band. They sound like themselves and they're still great at it. The most devastating part of this book are the excerpts from Mark's cancer journals, much like the most touch parting of Travis' were in his telling of the aftermath of the plane crash. I'll note that I deeply, deeply appreciated Mark's discussion of his struggles with OCD and anxiety. I've got different triggers but damn that hit home. Thanks Mark. You grow up with your parents' music being dubbed \"classic rock\". For me that meant Pink Floyd , Led Zeppelin, a dash of Yes and King Crimson (if your parents were real nerds). That makes blink-182 \"classic rock\" for my kids ( Alkaline Trio and AFI too). Our daughter wants to go see blink live (if and when we go), so I guess the exposure is working. Now where's Tom's book? : Ozzi's Sellout is an essential read on the mid-90s punk wave that blink-182 were a part of. : Pre-MAGA floating stage Kanye etc. etc. : Alkaline Trio were one of those titans in a genre that I just hadn't gotten in to. Skiba's tenure in blink changed that for me. I know I know — how could that happen? Well, pick your favorite genre, give it some thought and you'll be able to rattle off a few bands that are significant but never clicked for you. Maybe they will later and maybe you'll regret that they didn't earlier. That's Alkaline for me. : They're still trapped in footnote 3. Maybe that'll change someday. : Yeah, yeah they sound \"too much\" like themselves. If they changed too much you'd complain about that too. : She doesn't understand the lyrics — yet. I listened to Traveling Wilburys all the time growing up. Go back and read some of those lyrics.",
  "path": "/reading/books/9781408724552/fahrenheit-182",
  "publishedAt": "2025-04-26T00:00:00Z",
  "site": "at://did:plc:sttgf52vkk46f6yuknvqxvgh/site.standard.publication/self",
  "tags": [
    "autobiography",
    "emo",
    "music",
    "nonfiction",
    "punk rock"
  ],
  "title": "Fahrenheit-182"
}