I never thought I would be able to see Blink-182 up close and personal at a small venue in Hollywood. The Hollywood Palladium leaves only room for standing; a great venue for moshing, crowd surfing, and a good time. Since the recent reunion of the pop-punk band, Blink-182, fans everywhere have been fighting for the chance to see them play. Over the summer, I went to another Blink concert at Shoreline in Northern California. There were thousands of people in attendance, the venue was overly crowded, and it was pouring rain. This concert left me begging for more so when I heard about the Hollywood Palladium show, I made sure I was on Livenation at 10am so I could purchase the tickets right away.

The day of the concert, my sister and I woke up at 4am and arrived at the venue at 5am. Since the concert did not start until 8pm, we brought a sleeping bag and literally slept on the sidewalk for a few hours. Even though we had to sit on the street for quite some time, we found ways to entertain ourselves by meeting new people and being interviewed for the new Blinkumentary that will be released on DVD sometime soon.

Hours passed and the moment arrived for us to enter the venue. Our hours of waiting paid off because my sister and I were lucky enough to be front row! The first performer was Mickey Avalon, a performer that I have concluded I am not quite fond of. His performance was lacking in entertainment and heavily relied on the female dancers who performed with him onstage. I am also not a fan of rap music so I may be a little biased. The Aquabats performed next and brought a new sound to the stage. All dressed in superhero outfits, their performance was much more entertaining and comical. The overweight lead singer was funny and energetic, which made the crowd even more pumped for Blink.

After the opening acts, Blink finally came onstage and opened their set by playing Dumpweed. They continued to play all of their hit songs as well as other ones that everyone in the crowd seemed to know. No surprise, Travis Barker gave an extraordinary performance. There was no extravagant drum solo like there was at the Shoreline venue, but this did not matter because the crowd enjoyed the performance nonetheless. Mark Hoppus sounded much like he does on the albums while Tom Delonge was a bit pitchy in places. This however, did not affect the overall performance. Their energy and audience interaction made the performance what it was. The members of Blink are known for their wacky and immature humor onstage and this is one of the reasons why most people enjoy them so much. Throughout the concert, I watched as numerous fans were carried out of the crowd, drenched in sweat and evidently parched. Despite the numerous crowd surfers, pushing, and sweat, I did not want the concert to end.

After the show, I was fortunate enough to be handed the set list. My sister and I exited the venue and spotted the tour bus. Many fans were already standing there, in hopes of getting an autograph by some member of the band. Travis Barker came out about fifteen minutes after the show and signed for everyone there!

This concert was worth every penny and the fifteen hours of waiting. I have been reminded of how excited I am for their new album and some more small shows. If you are wishing to see a band up close, definitely dedicate yourself by waiting in line, no matter how long it is. It’s worthy a try and will be well worth it in the end.

–S. Stamm