On 08 Jan 2022, long-time San Antonio, TX scene veteran Skaxdad (aka- Joseph Guerrero) released the combo tribute/charity comp Fate Fell Short – A Blink-182 Compilation. The album consists of twenty-three acts across the ska and punk spectrum, and all proceeds from the sale of the comp go to the Prevent Cancer Foundation, in honor of Mark Hoppus’ fight against cancer. You can pick up a digital copy of that comp over at Skaxdad’s Bandcamp page.
TGEFM contributors and guests took a listen to all of the tracks, and carried on a brief discussion about them. Below you can find an embed of each song, and our thoughts and commentary.
Skaxdad – “Carousel”
Jeff Sorley: Skaxdad, the progenitor and driving force behind this release, launches the album with a cover of “Carousel,” which is the lead track from their 1994 demo, as well 1995’s Cheshire Cat. The cover is pretty straight forward and doesn’t venture to far from the source material.
I don’t think it is a bad cover per se (and I’m trying not to let myself get too down with straight-forward covers), it works well enough. But I’m not certain that, editorially, I would’ve made this the lead track. People enjoy straight-forward covers, but I think launching with one of the more creative renditions may have been a bolder choice.
Tiffa Vigilante: Jeff I agree, especially since the few artistic liberties taken with this cover don’t necessarily breathe new life into the song.
Not a huge fan of this guy’s Fat Mike-esque delivery of the vocals. Much of the song falls in and out of time in such a way that is certainly not intentional and doesn’t make for a very pleasant listening experience. The whole thing just seems rushed.
Really hoping we see some interesting interpretations of these songs and not one attempted replica after another.
Jeff: I’m not sure I entirely agree with the “Fat Mike-esque” delivery comment. I mean, Tom’s delivery on the original song is basically like a moan-y Fat Mike in the first place, isn’t it?
Tiffa: Maybe it’s the staccato delivery, the over-extension the singer is taking to sound snotty that’s just sounds forced, maybe unlike the singer’s actual voice. I could totally be projecting here!
Julie River: Yeah, this adds very little to the original. Even the vocals sound like Tom DeLonge’s nails-on-a-chalkboard-but-almost-in-a-good-way vocals. I tend to think of this as Blink’s first song since it’s the opening track of both Buddha and Cheshire Cat and this cover doesn’t really do it justice.
College Radio – “Pathetic”
Jeff: College Radio is a lot like Blink-182 with that dual vocalist thing, and I think they put it to good use here. The cover is pretty close to being straight-forward, but the guy covering Tom DeLonge’s vocals can actually carry a tune which put a bigger spin on it than I was expecting.
Not to knock Scott Raynor, but we’ve got almost 25 years on the release of Dude Ranch (holy fuck), and a lot of bands nowadays are able to showcase some phenomenal percussion, and the fills and flourishes added to this really pop out a lot over the original.
Steven Farkas: It’s always more difficult to be objective when you’re not the biggest fan of the original (which I’m not in this case), but College Radio due a perfectly acceptable job here. The vocals are solid,, particularly after the 2nd verse bridge and outtro – they really nail that last third of the song without seeming like a complete copycat. Overall I still don’t love the track, but it did make me go any check out more from College Radio!
Tiffa: Scott Raynor’s drumming on Dude Ranch is really worth noting as the band noticeably got faster by this point in their career. Raynor doesn’t do any of the crazy syncopation that we’ve come to expect from Travis Barker, but as far as keeping a steady punk beat going at breakneck speed, he’s your guy!
This cover is pretty close to the original but I appreciate the flourishes peppered in, especially the 2nd guitar’s added octave goodness throughout the main riff. I do wish the vocals were a bit more straightforward, perhaps not so delivered. There’s something about the new pop punk voice (spawned from Tom Delonge’s vocal delivery in the band’s own “I Miss You”) that’s just so grating to me. Perhaps it’s the overcomplication in the vibrato and maybe not understanding what vibrato is?
I didn’t mean for this to launch into a remedial music course. This cover is fine. (laughter)
Jeff: (laughter) Tiffa, I was thinking on your comments and I have to disagree. maybe not about the skill of that vocal delivery (and the vibrato), but just that it is there and it is honest. I don’t think anyone here believes that Tom DeLonge has anything resembling a “singing voice” and, IMHO, the later releases where he suddenly does, due to the magic of money (and, likely, hundreds of hours of Pixar-level audio manipulation), totally subtract from why I enjoyed his punk vocals in the first place.
Maybe College Radio delivers a bit more dramatically, but they’re a dramatic band. I bet they were all in drama club in high school… OK, maybe not. (laughter)
Julie: Even with the snot-nose Blink-style vocals, College Radio pull off better harmonies in their version than Blink had in the original and, it’s not a huge difference, but it does improve the song somewhat.
Lee (feat. Skaxdad) – “Damnit”
Jeff: I’m not sure who Lee is but, if I had to guess, “dad’ is in Skaxdad’s name so maybe Lee is Skaxdad’s kid?
Anyhow, what we have here is another fairly by-the-numbers cover. There’s not a lot new going musically, and Lee maybe could’ve put a little more oomph into the delivery. I thought the addition of TLC’s “Scrubs” during that little breakdown was funny. I’m not sure how that ended up in there, but it was a kick.
Daniel Rice: The music is good and the vocals are interesting but otherwise there is nothing too original in this for me. I didn’t even notice the TLC part the first time as it was kind of low volume, but once I heard it I did find that funny. Even though there wasn’t too much original in this, I did like it.
Julie: I like the gender switch on the vocals and the refusal to change gender pronouns, but the whole thing sounds like if Lisa Loeb covered this song without hearing the backing music she was singing over. Personally I was unamused by the insertion of “Scrubs.” This comp is not off to a good start.
Jeff: Ouch. (laughter)
STEADFAST HTX – “Dick Lips”
Jeff: I get a very Misfits/horror-punk vibe from this version and, you know what? I like it. Shut up. (laughter)
Steven: Can’t disagree with Jeff’s comments, after the first 30 seconds I though we were back on the misfits tribute comp and Danzig was about to start singing the intro to Halloween. Once I realised that wasn’t the case, the song really comes to life – the Misfits-esque guitar work continues but the vocals pull more from the Leatherface envelope and it probably shouldn’t work, but does. I liked this one a lot and it got better the more I listened to it.
Jeff: Ooooo… yeah! Leatherface! That’s the name I was looking for in my head! Good observation!
Tiffa: I enjoyed the appraoch to the song, honestly! But the fact that they tacked nearly an extra minute of music on this rather quick jam was really disheartening. The drummer took a lot of liberties that I don’t think were very successful and at times really changed the whole tempo of the song! Mid song! And more than once!
I think the most successful parts of this song exist in the pocket of the pre-chorus/chorus. Wouldn’t have thought to use gang vocals there and I think the result is pretty effective.
Julie: I like that this plays it a bit harder and with gruffer vocals, but the gang vocals on the chorus. Never thought I’d hear this kind of take on a song called “Dick Lips.”
Jeff: It’s kind of built on me to be one of my faves of the comp.
Southbound – “Waggy”
Jeff: I’m not sure who Southbound are, and I’m not really finding much on the social medias (or, to be fair, too much.. there seems to be five million acts named “Southbound”), so I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt on a lot of things. But this song just doesn’t work.
Unless there is some more post-production going on from the cut we received, it just sounds rough on the ears. There’s something about the snare drum especially. This sounds like some made a cell phone recording in a small room.
Tiffa: Jeff I totally agree, the reverb on the snare is so bad. This sounds like it was recorded at band practice and then they recorded vocals on a cell phone over it and then slapped the whole thing together in Garageband. Really upsetting as this is one of my favorite blink songs.
I’m finding it very interesting what of the blink finesse marks that these bands are struggling to meet. I wonder if it’s the expectation that blink songs are inherently poorly written and easy, that “Dammit,” among others, are staples for bands to learn early on and bang out at talent shows, and then later basement shows to a crowd of glazed over eyes you’re hoping to get singing along so when trying to use the same approach on the B-Sides of blink’s catalog, I just think some of these bands are going to keep turning up short.
Could also just be the lack of access to decent recording equipment/studios and the funds to do so, which then says to me, maybe you just sit this comp out and wait until you can do proper recordings.
Jeff: I wholeheartedly agree on that part. I appreciate that this comp is to benefit a worthy cause, but it is also to showcase yourself(ves) as a musical act, and this song really doesn’t make me want to go and find out who Southbound is. I know that sounds harsh, but so does this song.
Julie: Ever play a vinyl record that’s kinda dirty and the volume keeps going in and out? That’s how this song sounds. I’m all for making a song your own but nothing about this cover works.
The Imperial Walkers – “Untitled”
Steven: After the first few bars I was expecting to really hate this, as I thought the band were really taking this cover waaaaay off piste, but I really really liked this in the end. The complete change of pace really focuses on the lyrics and Mike Turek’s vocals are perfectly pitched and for me surpassing Tom’s on the original. This one sets a really high benchmark for all the other ska covers on this compilation. Easily one of the best on this record.
Daniel: This cover is great! I think I might even like this better than the original. I don’t have much else to add other than The Imperial Walkers is a great band name also! Great job.
Jeff: I agree, Mike’s vocals have an inflection, especially in the first half, that ad a lot of nuance to the song. When it breaks into a faster ska, it turns into a blast. Kudos to the brass section for adding a super kick to this song!
Tiffa: What a great cover! I loved this from the very top—such a great dynamic shift! This stands apart from an easily identified blink 182 track, like you wouldn’t know it if you heard this first. Wow, loved it from start to finish. Actually said, “That was fucking awesome!” as it ended. Missed Mark Hoppus’ signature “aah’s” at the end, but overall a really great performance on an often forgotten track. Well done here.
Julie: Everything on this cover works: starting with the badass band name, then the impeccable ska cover with great energy, and vocals that far surpass Tom’s (then again so does a cat stuck in a garbage disposal). Probably the best cover so far.
The Wristcutters – “Apple Shampoo”
Steven: I know its harsh to comment on low production values, but this sounds so hollow like it was recorded on an iphone and I can’t work out whether it was deliberate or a result of circumstance, but either way the gritty, warbled vocal sort of works. The strange thing about this one is it’s neither a straightforward interpretation or a re-work of the original, it just feels like a band in their garage giving the track a go after limited rehearsals and their friends recorded it on the fly. That’s not necessarily a bad thing as like I said earlier, it kind of works.
Tiffa: I can’t believe how many of these bands are struggling with the drum beats in these songs, and we haven’t even approached Travis Barker territory! I agree with Steven, I feel terrible commenting on the quality of the track itself at this point because yeah, it’s structurally not great, but I really feel like the curator of these comps needs to be a more honest editor. Like this track was nowhere near ready for a release let alone as track 7 on a charity compilation.
Really disappointed with this one as this is another of my favorite blink tracks. Also brave to keep the r-word in in this year of our lord, 2022.
Jeff: The Wristcutters don’t have a lot of music out under their name, and the only one with a drummer is their most recent release– a 2020 two-song EP. I can tell you that, at least in that release, the drummer sounds like they know their stuff.
Here, however, not so much. I can often handle low production values but, Tiffa, I think you nailed it on the head: we’re not even into Travis Barker territory yet.
Overall, I think I would like this cover a lot better, warts and all, if the percussion was on the ball. As it is, it is just too distracting for me because the beat I want to hear in my head just isn’t matching up with what is on the tape.
Daniel: I too usually don’t mind low production value, but in this case it didn’t work for me. I pretty much agree with what Tiffa and Jeff said already, so I will comment on the positives. I thought the guitar playing was good and the vocals decent.
Julie: We seem to be doing this comp chronologically, which means we’re closing out Dude Ranch with a few glaring omissions like “A New Hope,” “Voyeur,” and most importantly “Josie,” the second most popular single on the album. That said, I agree with the low quality recording and the shocking inability to keep up with drumbeats before we even hit the Travis Barker years.
Nothing Lost – “Don’t Leave Me / Reckless Abandon”
Daniel: At first this sounds like a straight up cover of “Don’t Leave Me” but then mashups into “Reckless Abandon” and it works great together. I like Nothing Lost’s two song mashup approach and give this one a thumps up.
Jeff: It turns out it is listed on the preview link we have as “Don’t Leave Me” which isn’t the case on the Bandcamp page.
At first I wasn’t sure about the vocal delivery but, then thinking back to when “Don’t Leave Me” came out I recall that I didn’t really care for how bland Mark’s vocal delivery was, so I decided I like it.
I also like how they double back the transition returning to “Don’t Leave Me.” I’ll admit that I was on my way out with Blink-182 by Take Off Your Pants… so I had to look up “Reckless Abandon.
Tiffa: I enjoyed the mash-up, but really wanted it to go back to “Don’t Leave Me” maybe a little sooner. Great idea, but maybe just not the best execution. Band is pretty tight though, and the drummer made the track his own without trying to replicate Barker’s beats to the point where it becomes distracting.
Julie: Here’s the thing about mashing up one of Mark’s songs with one of Tom’s songs: Mark was a much better songwriter than Tom. They started out pretty equal, but Mark improved exponentially faster than Tom and the two didn’t really catch up until Neighborhoods. So it’s a bit uneven to mash up good lyrics with bad ones.
Buena Suerte – “Going Away to College”
Jeff: I’ve mentioned before that I have a soft spot for bands not singing in their native language, so I see now problem with Buena Suerte’s vocal delivery here. In fact, as a mostly slow tempo ska track, it works out pretty damn nicely. I also really dig the backing “uh-ahhh-ah” which are too similar to those in “A Message to You, Rudy” to be coincidence.
Daniel: I liked this one, kind of a funky reggae ska feel. I didn’t feel the “uh-ahhh-ah” was too similar to “A Message to You, Rudy” maybe The Dead Milkmen version. (not really, just threw in Dead Milkmen reference for Jeff).
Julie: Here’s the thing about this song: the lyrics are perfect for a pop-punk emo song. It’s a wistful song about love that if you think hard enough about it is actually about a legal adult dating an underage girl, which is a big part of pop-punk these days (laughter). Okay jokes aside though, the cover works surprisingly well and gives you a really different rendition than the original that’s still equal to the original. I also loved the change in language at the end.
Dang!t – “What’s My Age Again?”
Steven: Ok, so I know we always complain when bands just do a pretty true interpretation of a track on a charity compilation, so Dang!t should be applauded for taking their ska-pop approach to one of Blink’s best known songs and for the most part it works. If I’m totally honest, the electronic intro bit worried me and they just get away with the weaving in of the telephone conversation and references. at first I also found the slower pace irritating, but upon 2nd and 3rd listen this felt more natural. Overall I liked this a lot more than I expected to.
Daniel: I would agree with Steven that at first the synth heavy intro and phone sound effects had me thinking what is this? After a second listen I feel it all kind of works. I don’t think this will be my favorite song on the comp, but I enjoyed this one and applaud the unique approach.
Tiffa: This definitely sounds like they had a great time while recording it. Gotta applaud the attempt made to recreate this song and not just make it just another straight forward cover. It’s funny, ’cause when the synth first came in, I was very intrigued and had a totally different expectation of where this was going. Overall, a pretty fun cover!
Jeff: I’m a fan of Bobgoblin and a bigger fan of their 00’s-era side project Adventures of Jet, so when this started I thought I had accidentally played AOJ’s song “Number One.”
Turns out I was wrong. I’m surprised this works well. ’sfunny because it definitely feels slower than what I remember but, I guess, the tempo matches up just about the same.
Julie: “What’s My Age Again?” is pretty much a perfect pop-punk song musically. That guitar part is gorgeous then it packs a serious punch. But the lyrics are terribly dated with its references to pay phones, caller ID, and not being familiar with AD(H)D. That being said, the synth and the ska elements work beautifully without ruining the original.
Neckscars – “Adam’s Song”
Daniel: As most of you know this original is a slower more melodic song, but Neckscars said F that! This is a much more sped up and harder version and it rocks! They even took some liberties and changed some of the lyrics I believe. I am not familiar with Neckscars music, but I might have to be after listening to this cover.
Tiffa: Ok cool, so they turned “Adam’s Song” into an Iron Chic song, which is way better than what I feared when I saw the song on the list. I wish it stayed in the punch-ier pocket (read: fast fast fast) but overall this is a really dope cover.
Jeff: Neckscars are a lot of fun. I like what they did here and, honestly, I’m glad they did it. Blink’“s Adam’s Song” is long and boring to me and, in hindsight, signaled the band’s intent to become something “bigger” and more “serious” than they were. Neckscars show that a song with serious lyrics doesn’t have to be too self-important.
Tiffa: “Self-important” is definitely the right word here. There is a struggle I see, and have myself suffered from, in the punk genre, when writing goofy songs about “nothing” just sort of feels empty when you yourself are aging and so is the audience.
But in the same respect, part of the thing I always loved about blink 182 is that they never strived to be anything more than what they were; they never tried to go political (not a knock at all at Green Day who have, arguably, always been a political band [yes you can @ me]) or be more than just a fun band trying to offer a good time. Imagine how terrible a political blink 182 song would be. They’ve almost always stayed in their lane. (laughs)
Jeff: (laughter) STAY IN YOUR LANE, MARK!
Julie: “Adam’s Song” is my second least favorite Blink song (don’t worry, my least favorite is coming up) and my least favorite of Mark’s songs and it’s largely for these lyrics:
“Remember the time that I spilled the cup
Of apple juice in the hall
Please tell mom this is not her fault.”
That’s a big non-sequitur for what’s essentially a suicide note. “Remember that inconsequential thing that happened once? Anyway, tell mom not to blame me for offing myself.”
Neckscars change the lyrics in a bizarre way:
“Remember the time that I spilled the cup
Of alcohol in the hall.
Please tell mom this is all her fault.”
It’s about 10% less stupid and 110% meaner. I also like jacking it up into a harder song. Overall they get points for doing what they can with an awful song.
Skatune Network – “All the Small Things”
Daniel: I listened to this song second on the comp as I am familiar with Skatune Network and their cover songs and I’m also very familiar with this Blink song. It feels more slowed down and mellow than the original but it’s really not. It doesn’t quite have the energy of the original to me but that’s ok. I love the use of the horns replacing the Na-na, na-na, vocals and the sax in the bridge works well. Overall this one was pretty good.
Tiffa: Jer understands ska in all of its nuances, so this is a fine ska interpretation of probably everyone’s most skipped blink songs. It does feel like it lacks a little bit of energy, but knowing that Jer does 96% of this themselves, it’s hella impressive.
Jeff: This one isn’t new to me as Skatune Network released it back in Apr 2020, and graciously contributed it to this comp.
I’d have to agree with Tiffa’s comments. I think the one thing Jer can’t entirely do is fully adapt the lyrics to the slower tempo. I think that they just don’t apply well in this case, and that isn’t Jer’s fault. Honestly, you come to the Skatune Network show to see how many instruments they can pull of, and the brass in this track is to die for.
Julie: Skatune Network, which is basically Jer Hunter of We Are the Union in their mission to cover every song ever written and then some, never put out a cover I didn’t like, and this is no exception. Jer turns one of Blink’s most overrated songs and makes something great out of it!
Holy Schnikes! – “Anthem Part Two”
Tiffa: Please take the vocal modulators away from all of these young folks!!
I just feel as though this song has way too much going on, too many musical styles happening one right after the other in an attempt to add pizazz? It’s just not how song writing works. I think it’s funny these kids won’t curse. I really hate the ska bass, which is so unlike me, why doesn’t it work here? There’s a really magical part in the second part of the second verse, but other than that, all of these dynamic shifts really just don’t add anything to the song.
Jeff: I don’t have too much of a problem with all of that, but the production on the drums again… sigh.
I’ll admit that I don’t know this song. My interest in Blink dropped off of the map after Enema… soooo, I had to go look it up and listen to it. I think my biggest concern is the vocal delivery. I’m just not buying it. Other than that, I’m not counting out Holy Schnikes! as a band, and am curious to look up some more their work.
Dan: There is a lot going on here, too much?, maybe a little. I liked the bass line myself and overall thought is was interesting. I also did not know this song or Holy Schnikes! but like Jeff, they did peak my curiosity.
Julie: Why on earth would you agree to do a Blink tribute album and then cut out the word “fucked”? If you don’t have a foul moth, Blink didn’t really influence you.
I loved the bassline and synths in the beginning, but then they disappeared or at least got buried in the back. I wish they committed to the synth more.
Also, why cover “Anthem Part 2” and not “Part 1”? The song choices on this comp are all over the place.
Jeff: To (maybe) answer that last question, I suspect there were a lot of drop outs, and last minute additions, to this comp from its initial announcement to final release. So it is likely that “Anthem” was on the menu, but fell through?
Michael Turnini (feat. Olivia Ulher, Asa Martin) – “Online Songs”
Tiffa: A folk punk cover of a blink 182 song? In 2022? Hell yeah. This is pretty straight forward as far as covers go and maybe wish there was some more folk punky elements mixed in, but this was fun and a pleasant listen.
Jeff: I’d be much more into this if it didn’t suffer from that issue we’ve found elsewhere where it seems they recorded it on a phone in a small room or something. It sounds like it is a lot of fun and, likely, sounds killer live. But so much of the moving parts in this cover are drowning each other out that I just like it, not love it.
Daniel: I love they did a folk punk version and I enjoyed it, but like Jeff said, I liked it, but didn’t love it. As Tiffa said it just needed a few more elements.
Julie: I love the boldness to cover this as an acoustic cover and the trademark Blink “na na nas” work even better with an acoustic guitar. Fuck recording quality, this is a great cover.
Voluntary Hazing – “First Date”
Steven: Another of Blink’s most recognisable songs given the ska treatment and this really COULD have worked, but the whole thing just lacks depth and energy! I like the vocals, even if it feels like a serious bit of Elyse Rogers cosplay going on. The composition and horns in particular are really impressive, I just wish the production values matched the band’s ambition with this one.
Daniel: Yes another ska version! I really wanted to love this one but it was just ok to me. I agree the horns were great and the vocals good, but it just doesn’t have the energy it should. Good, but not great.
Tiffa: This cover needs a cup of coffee or something. It’s lacking fun, maybe there’s too much snark in the vocal delivery? It doesn’t read as playful/vulnerable as the original and I think that’s what makes it a little lackluster.
Julie: So remember when I said my least favorite Blink song was yet to come? Well here it is! Wesley Willis would scoff at these lyrics. Tom, as usual, doesn’t know how to rhyme lyrics very well and is forced to contort the English language into unnatural positions just to make the song rhyme.
That being said, Voluntary Hazing’s transformation of the song is enough of a laid back ska song that it takes the god awful lyrics less seriously than Tom did, making the song far more bearable.
The Pandalion – “Stay Together for the Kids”
Jeff: Another Blink song I was unfamiliar with, so I had to go listen to it. I didn’t like it. That being said, I still don’t really like this version, but not as badly as the original, and that’s because of the song, not The Pandalion. Because holy hell does The Pandalion throw us a massive curveball in this version. It doesn’t try to blow up into Blink’s over-produced umbrage of sound, but keeps it cool and casual through out.
Kudos The Pandalion for making this something different.
Daniel: I am familiar with this Blink song, but it’s not one of my favorites. The Pandalion takes this in a completely different direction. The song was done well but this also is not one of my favorites on the comp. I’m not knocking on the band, it just wasn’t really my style.
Julie: I really think the original song was Tom thinking “Well if Mark can write “Adam’s Song,” I can write a serious song, too!” And that was the end of Blink’s sophomoric phase. But this cover kills it with the auto tune. I’m not necessarily against auto tune, but this is just too much and it ruins the song.
The Third-Rates – “Roller Coaster”
Tiffa: I think this is pretty successful in that it is not a direct replica of the same song in a different style. Much like the cover of “Untitled,” this could stand alone as a The Third-Rates track. That is to say, there was obvious thought and intention put into this arrangement.
Jeff: This is fun, well-produced. Much better than the original. It plays surprisingly well as a ska track, and that’s a testament to what The Third-Rates have brought to the table.
Daniel: I didn’t know this original song and, after listening to both versions, I like this one more. I may have to check out what else The Third-Rates have done.
Julie: This translates beautifully as a ska song and the short guitar part on the bridge was absolutely perfect.
The Butts – “Every Time I Look for You”
Daniel: This is a pretty straight forward cover done with female lead vocals. I don’t know anything about The Butts and I really wanted to come up with a butt joke that worked. I liked this version, good quality, good playing and drumming, and mixed well.
Tiffa: At least this is the first of some of the more straight forward covers where the quality, musicianship, and performance are all relatively well matched, These folks nailed the accents, hit all the marks; this song would finish 2nd in a “Every Time I Look For You” sound-alike contest.
All in all, as someone who plays in a 3 pc punk band who occasionally busts out covers by other 3 pc bands, I just don’t see the point of releasing a carbon copy of a song. I want to hear how you would perform the song; not how well you can emulate what you’ve already heard. It’s a finesse!
Julie: It is a carbon copy, albeit with a vocalist of a seemingly different gender, but it at least understands the song well and it’s a competent cover. Was it wholly necessary? No. But it was well performed.
Flip and the Combined Effort – “I Miss You”
Daniel: I guess I have to stop saying another ska version! At first I wasn’t sure about the opening vocals but after a few more plays I think it works. This one had good energy and was fun. I especially like the grunge part. This is one of my favorite ones so far.
Tiffa: There’s a LOT of ska on this comp! A surprising amount even. This is one of my absolute least favorite blink songs; the song that launched a thousand terrible pop punk vocalists. There’s a lot of intention in this arrangement and I appreciate that this isn’t just slopped together. This is another one that very easily could’ve been an excruciating cover. I just think there’s a bit too much happening here, like too many new pop punk tricks used in an effort to make a song more interesting, like the faux-breakdown/gang vocals at the end. It adds nothing for me. I almost wish they stuck with the ska and played with that throughout.
Jeff: They could’ve farted into a microphone and made this better than the original. (laughter)
.I think the heavy ending would’ve worked a lot of better if had been recorded and produced better. The audio up to that point sounds pretty darn good, but then that rolls in and doesn’t explode on you, it just feels flat.
Not a bad cover, but maybe a bit too ambitious.
Daniel: I have to say I liked everything about the ending, reminds me of a Skankin’ Pickle song. It was the beginning that I was not super crazy about.
Julie: As we move chronologically we get to Blink’s worst album, the album even Robert Smith couldn’t save. It felt like after “Adam’s Song” and “Stay Together for the Kids” they got over-competent in their ability to write serious songs and tried to write a whole album of them, which was a terrible idea. Again, they didn’t get the serious songs right until Neighborhoods, their best album that is criminally left off this comp
.Flip and the Combat Effort fix a fairly terrible song off an abysmally terrible album and completely change the genre to make it into something actually good!
The Jukebox Romantics – “Go”
Tiffa: Straight forward and on the nose, but very well executed. One of the tracks I was more surprised to see covered. It’s pretty interesting where a lot of these folks felt safest in blink covers. I’m also noticing that there’s some intention arrangement in this comp as far as what songs go where, but I can’t say that it’s super successful as far as showcasing the quality tracks.
Daniel: I like this song and this cover was done well, however, it’s very close to the original and doesn’t add anything for me. I wish The Jukebox Romantics would have taken a few liberties as the band sounds great and recording quality was good.
Jeff: I keep forgetting this song exists.
I agree that TJR maybe coulda/shoulda done more with this. It’s very straight-forward so it doesn’t sound bad. But I like me them Jukebox Romantics, so I was hoping for something more.
Julie: This just sounds like the original, which was a pretty big failure to begin with so I don’t know why I want to hear the exact same song again.
Young Costello – “Bored to Death”
Jeff: I know Young Costello is another one of the seemingly limitless projects that Skaxdad is involved in. I didn’t remember this song existed and had to look it up. The video is very shaky cam.
This one also keeps it pretty straight-laced. I think they do a good job of mixing the vocals around between clean and super-janky. The horns land pretty well, too.
Overall not a bad cover but just goes to reinforce, for me, why I didn’t follow Blink-182’s musical journey, primarily because I just don’t find their newer (and by that I mean close to the last 20 years… haha) material very interesting.
Julie: Sorry, I wrote my review of “Darkside” before this one because Jeff listed them out of order (see Julie’s comments in the next track). This is another Blink-183 song without Feldmann’s overproduction which makes for a more down-to-earth song. I also love the ska elements at the end.
Porch Dream – “Darkside”
Tiffa: This is not a blink song I’m familiar with, wow! Actually no, now that I looked it up, I know exactly what song this is. This is fine cover, but wow can we talk about what a shitty song this is all around? This comes from the era of all blink 182 songs being made up of non-sequiturs and overproduction, pop influenced pre-choruses and choruses, it’s just not music I wanna hear 40+ year old men playing. Somehow 40+ year old men singing about boners and girls ignoring them is somehow more appealing to me. (laughter)
Jeff: (laughter) “This comes from the era of all blink 182 songs being made up of non-sequiturs and overproduction, pop influenced pre-choruses and choruses…”
I think that’s been their modus operandi since Take Off Your Pants and Jacket… but I get what you’re saying. The video for the original is fun, with all of the kids doing whatever silly dance is in Fortnite or whatever games the kids play these days.
It’s a fun cover and who doesn’t like a decent horn section? (assholes, that’s who) I think that, in the end, the original isn’t terribly memorable, so it’s hard to find the parts where this really pops out compared to the original. I think that it is better than the original in style and substance, if not production. But Porch Dream doesn’t have hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars to throw at it, so I’m fine with what they landed on.
Julie: We finally get into the Blink-183 era, which is what I like to call the Skiba era because, even though Skiba is a better singer and songwriter than Tom DeLonge—and he’s never left a band to prove aliens exist—no band should be called Blink-182 that doesn’t have Tom DeLonge in it.
This is basically an exact copy of the original but without John Feldmann there to use all the production tricks he learned from his work with Ashley Simpson and 5 Seconds of Summer. That makes it a little more organic than the original and I like that.
Jeff: Skiba-182?
Final Thoughts
Daniel: I’ll prerequisite this to say I’m not a huge Blink fan. I liked their first few albums but haven’t really kept up with them over the years. That being said I did find I really enjoyed some songs on this comp. There is not a huge variety of music styles, but there is a lot of ska! Which is good! If you are a big Blink fan I think you find this comp worth getting, it is for a good cause after all. If you are not a big Blink fan there are still some good songs on here and you might find this worth adding to your play list. I know I plan to get if for some of the great ska tunes!
Jeff: Tribute comps are really hit or miss, and I’m not entirely sure which side of the line this one lands on. On the one hand, there are some pretty fun covers on here. On the other hand, I found the quality of a lot of the covers a bit lacking. Not always in musical style, but some just had a bad sound. Either poor recording, poor production, or both. I know that for smaller bands it can be tough to get some quality studio time but, as the person compiling the album, Skaxdad should’ve cut some of these.
As with any comp, the main purpose it to expose you to new bands, which this one did. It also double dips in raising funds for a good cause. On those points, it is a winner. But even with that, I’d feel hard-pressed to recommend it to people because I feel that a lot of it fell flat. Maybe it was too rushed? Maybe there are a million other factors as to why it didn’t stand out to me more. I don’t know. To be fair, it is only $5 and the proceeds go to a good cause. I guess I say “got for it!”
Julie: As a long-time Blink fan, I loved this comp. Unlike some tribute comps we’ve reviewed in the past, it doesn’t play it too close to the originals. There’s lots of ska covers and, with Blink never really using ska elements, it was a welcome change of pace from the originals.
The Bandcamp page said the comp was made as a tribute to Mark Hoppus following his recent cancer diagnosis, which we all hope he makes a complete recovery from so he can continue making music for years. I can’t think of a better way to honor him.
Tiffa: While there were a lot of interesting elements on this comp, including the surprise amount of impressive ska takes featured, I do believe this comp fell short (this time…). There is some responsibility of the label/editor to ensure that these tracks are at the very least of decent quality and presented in the best possible order. It’s easy to throw together a comp, especially in today’s day and age where physical copies become more and more rare, so if the expectation is that folks will want to talk about it, share it, and most importantly buy it, the success comes from that complete feeling, the cohesion in the track listing–perhaps Jeff is right in feeling that this has a feeling of being rushed. I agree with Julie tho, points and kudos where deserved; I hope Mark was able to hear at least a few of these.
the white drew carey (aka – Jeff Sorley) is the founder and head editor of TGEFM. He’s lived (outside of) Chicago, Madison WI, (ugh) Penn State, Lyon FR, Oxford UK, central New Jersey, and now within earshot of SFO in the Bay Area. When not scouring the web for more great bands and labels to post about, he also spends time drawing (mostly) silly sci-fi and anime stuff under the name Asplenia Studios.
