Disco de blink-182: “Take off Your Pants and Jacket [Clean]”

All Right. What I am going to say is not going to please to many people, But y'know What? I DON'T CARE, so here goes:

When Enema of the State was released, MTV struck once again. They took the songs from enema, overplayed their music videos on TRL, and effectively got Blink to be labled "pop". Now, Takeoff has been released, and features some of the best punk songs they've ever produced. Can anyone seriously say that after hearing "Anthem Part Two", "Roller Coaster", or "Give Me One Good Reason" that Blink is not still capable of Hi quality punk? If they can then they are kidding themselves. I guarantee you that if they heard the same exact songs coming out of NOFX, or MXPX, that they would consider it punk without question. Why? Because of the name. And for those who at this very moment are saying to themselves "this guy doesn't know what punk is," Some of my favorite bands include NOFX, No Use For a Name, and Rancid, so I think I know what I'm talking about. The fact of the matter is that MTV could make ANYTHING pop. Any song they play on TRL will become "pop." And, by the way, as for the term "teeny-bopper", (which all of you high And mighty "I don't listen to anything that is remotely popular" people use so easily), Anything that teens listen to en masse could be considered that. Are the majority of Greenday's fans Teens? I think so. How about Staind? hmm... Yup, them too. But do you see them being branded pop? of course not. Now, I will openly and freely admit that yes, Blink's style has changed over the past 7 years, but WHO DOESN'T?? Changing ones musical style is the sign of talent. Would you really be happy if Blink was putting music out that sounded just like Cheshire? I doubt it. Lastly, (I'm almost finished, I swear) as for the whole "Sell Out" thing that people keep yammering about, I have a question to ask: Do you see Blink 182 brand nail polish out there? How 'bout Commercials of them advertising shoes, or soda, or sporting equipment? Unless I'm gravely mistaken, (which I'm not) the answer is no. This Cd is excellent, combining powerful, serious lyrics in the forms of Anthem Part two, Story of a lonely Guy, and Stay Together For The Kids, Songs about falling in and out of love, like The Rock Show, Online Songs, First Date, and Please Take Me Home, and two joke songs. The Songs are all excellent in their own way, each with a different message, and each with an excellent punk hook. Stay Together for the Kids has to be my favorite, as I can relate to it, and paints a truly vivid picture of a family that is falling apart. An excellent buy for any Blink OR punk fan. I also recommend Cheshire Cat, and Dude Ranch, which are both outstanding punk albums. The one problem with this cd is that I have to find the other four bonus songs and listen to them (I have the Red version).

The bottom line is to get over the name, and listen to the music. Instead of trying to impress people with how you don't conform all that, just listen to what you like!! If you don't like this cd, don't listen to it. If you think it's the best thing ever, listen to it. But, for the love of God, Don't get all high and mighty about what is "pop" and what isn't. You all may now click the "Not helpful" Button at will. That's ok, I didn't write this to be popular, just to make myself heard. Have a nice day.

I want to start my review on a bit of a negative tone, but I need to say what needs to be said. For all the punk fans reviewing this album negatively and calling everyone who listens to it mindless drones you really need to wake up. Apparently it hasn't sunk in yet that pop punk and hardcore punk are two very different genres of punk. If you don't like it fine, but don't come on here pushing your opinions on everyone else who really can appreciate this record for what it is. Now that I cleared that up I can get down to my review, and to kick it off I'll let you know this is a great album by Blink 182. Personally I didn't enjoy "Enema of the state" except for a few tracks, but that's not because I dislike the music it was just my personal opinion. "Take off..." really satisfied me with it's great variety of songs and lyrics. Songs such as "Happy holidays...","First date", "The rock show" and "Please take me home" showcase Blink's ability to institute teenage toilet humor in with quality music. "Anthem Pt. 2", "Story of a lonely guy","Stay together for the kids","Reckless abandon","Give me one good reason" and "Shut up" prove to the world that this trio can write serious songs as well. For those who really do like pop punk and Blink 182 you'll find that you can truly appreciate this release by this ever so talented band.

This is an awesome cd...probably the best I've heard in a long time. It is definitely better than Enema of the State, and I think it's even better than Dude Ranch. The songs bear much more of a resemblance to Dude Ranch than Enema (which is a good thing, trust me!), and are really fast paced and easy to listen to while still retaining the catchiness inherent in Enema. Anthem Part 2 is amazing, as is The Rock Show...but you can't really go wrong with any of the [serious] tracks on this cd. Untitled is really cool too; it's a lot slower than the rest of the songs, but it adds an element of diversity that improves the overall worth of the cd. The only thing that holds this cd back is the humor...the bonus track is absolutely disgusting, and Happy Holidays, You Bastard is ridiculously stupid and revolting as well. The title of the cd itself is way too immature...Blink needs to stop trying to relate to a purile moron's sense of humor. These things do detract from the quality of an otherwise great cd...Despite that, however, Blink-182 is still one of the best bands out there, and this is Blink at its best. Buy it!!!!

Let's face it, Blink needs to grow up, but that still doesn't mean they don't make great music.

Anthem Part 2- A great opening, gives me chills every time I hear it. Does the excellent "Anthem" justice to say the least.

Online Songs- This is the reason I bought the CD, and It's not bad. Does get a little boring after a while though unfortunately.

First Date- This proves that rock stars are still human, so true. So true.

Happy Holidays.....- Strangely addicting, great guitar work.

Story of a lonely guy- The second best song on the disk. It'll grow on you.

Rock Show- I don't like this song, and I never really have. Hey, that's just me though.

Stay Together for the kids- A really sad song, great guitar in this too.

Roller Coaster- Probably has the best chorus on the CD, really catchy tune too.

Reckless Abandon- All right, this is the best song on the CD, by far. Great chorus, great lyrics, great guitar, great period. Here's a sample of the best part of the song:

Break a window and bust a wall

Everytime I look for you- Not my fvorite, but it has the best opening line of any of the songs: "Never found out why you left him, but this answer begs that question"

Give me one good reason- Rebellion! A really catchy song

Shut up- Good song about bad relationhips, genuinely angry.

Please take me home- A good song about a guy's heart being broken.

Bonus tracks- All the serious ones are masterful, the "joke" ones all [are not funny].

This is my favorite of all of Blink 182 CDs. All of the songs are good. Any fan of Blink should definately own this CD.

1.Anthem Part 2- good song about teenagers. nice music. 9/10

2.Online Songs- one of my favorites on the Cd. 10/10

3.First Date- good song about a first date. not one of my favorites but i enjoy it. 8/10

4.Happy Holidays- only about 40 seconds long, but it is funny. 9/10

5.Story of a Lonely Guy- Probably my least favorite on the album. 7/10

The Rock Show- One of the hits off this CD, good drums. 9/10

7.Stay Together For The Kids- a deeper, more mature song about divorce. another one of my favorites. 10/10

8.Roller Coaster- pretty good song that slows down at some points and picks up at others. 8/10

9.Recless Aboandon- great summer song. 10/10

10.Everytime I Look For You- my favorite song on the album, even though a lot of people don't like it. 11/10

11.Give Me One Good Reason- song about not wanting to fit in. catchy chorus. 9/10

12.Shut Up- song about leaving your girlfriend, another catchy chorus. 8/10

13.Please Take Me Home- final song on the album about falling in love with a friend. My favorite song sung by Tom. 10/10

All in all this is an amazing CD and any punk rock fans should go out and buy it.