There are certain stereotypes that go along with specific genres of music. Over the past several years, it has been hastily decided that anyone who bought an *N Sync CD must be a twelve-year old female who dreams day and night of her impending marriage to Justin Timberlake. People have concluded that anyone who makes a purchase of a Britney Spears album is a scruffy 50-year-old man who wants nothing but to stare longingly at the cover art all day. Fans of "punk" band Blink 182 are expected to be pimply-faced boys within the age range of 12-14, who are nothing but whiny, perverted, snotty-nosed, skateboard-riding, pseudo-rebellious brats.

[quick stats check]: Hi. I'm 18. I'm a girl. I'm a college sophomore. I like Blink 182.

Over the past year, Blink 182 fans have been sort of in a fit. A frenzy, if you will. You see -- not too long ago, the members of Blink 182 announced their split. Whether or not this hiatus was temporary, we still aren't exactly sure. Whatever the case, here I sit with a collection of exciting, fun, energetic Blink 182 songs to fondly reminisce upon. So just in case fans won't get treated to another full-length studio album, this disc should make us exceptionally happy. Shouldn't it?

Well, my hypothesis states that it should. Quite frankly, Greatest Hits collections either get it right or they don't. There are rarely any in-betweens. Most of Blink 182's hit singles were perfect at accomplishing exactly what they intended to accomplish -- they were loud, quirky, whiny, lovely little anthems. We scrawled the lyrics in the margins of our World Geography notebooks. We chanted the catchy choruses at our best friend's sleepovers. Everything that makes a hit memorable can be found in a Blink 182 song.

Blink 182's songs are just so complete. They have an extremely cohesive feel -- perhaps the guys' close friendships have led to this, because everything just sounds so tight, so together. Perhaps one of the most perfect examples comes in "Carousel", a speedy burst of energy with scratchy vocals, catchy hooks, and the vivacious, trademark Blink 182 sound stamped all over it. "M&Ms" keeps the pace up, with vocalist Mark Hoppus's memorable quips of "I just wanna be alone with your smile," layered over an all-too-infectious, punkish beat.

To this day, "Dammit" remains one of Blink 182's most successful hits. Tom DeLonge's fuzzy, catchy guitar work accentuates Mark's cries of "Well, I guess this is growing up" in this truly enjoyable song that provided definitive hooks and mindless fun for so many pop and rock fans in the late 1990s. "Josie", despite its redundancy, is a brilliant showcase of Tom and Mark's perfectly (imperfectly?) blended vocal stylings -- Tom's raspy, slightly whiny tone is a great contrast to Mark's occasionally monotonous, less enthusiastic style.

The inclusion of "What's My Age Again?" and "All the Small Things" from the band's 1999 smash Enema of the State was all-too-obvious. These two hits are what really shot Blink 182 into the "mainstream" -- during the summer of 1999, it was nearly impossible to avoid seeing the videos to these rambunctiously catchy songs on TRL. Hearing them on pop radio wasn't all too uncommon either; this wasn't exactly a welcome idea to old-school Blink 182 fans, who felt they sold out. Whatever the case, the poppy choruses and cheesy, fun lyrics ("Nobody likes you when you're 23 / and you still act like you're in freshman year!") speak for themselves.

"Adam's Song" explores Blink 182's more somber side. The lyrics bear a strong anti-suicidal message, and Mark's voice is grave -- you can practically HEAR his serious facial expression. Fans of Blink 182's more raunchy, immature side may have been turned off by this song, but its midtempo pop/rock groove and chilling chorus guaranteed its success as a hit. "Stay Together For The Kids", a semi-successful track taken from 2001's Take off Your Pants & Jacket, has an excellent, gritty flow. It, too, has a rather moody vibe, dealing with the issues of growing up in WW3, AKA, constant parental fighting. "No stupid poem / could fix this home / I'd read it everyday," Mark ponders desolately.

Much of the hits from Blink 182's 2003 self-titled record are hit-or-miss. "Feeling This" is a rollercoaster-ride of a song and is a refreshing return to all the glory of Blink 182's immaturity. Drummer Travis Barker pounds away to create a solid, groovy rhythm that is a wonderful backdrop to this hit single. "I Miss You" is a bass-heavy, 1970's-esque song that Blink 182 fans tend to love or hate -- musically, it's a step up . . . very well-developed, with a chorus that delives power and raw emotion. "Always" and "Down" don't fare quite as well though -- the former goes with an overly cheesy, redundant formula and the latter tries too hard to be dramatic, with its overblown loud/soft/loud transitions.

Casual Blink 182 fans who have never gotten around to checking out all of their albums should RUN, not walk, to the nearest FYE, Best Buy -- whatever -- to go pick up this Greatest Hits compilation. People gravitate to Blink 182 when they are looking for something fun: 3-minute-blasts of songs that are equally capable of being absolutely mindless as they are pensive and morbid. . . okay, okay, maybe not equally capable, but you get my point. The inclusion of two new songs may raise a few hardcore fans' eyebrows, but the truth is that with the hyper, infectious "Not Now" and "Another Girl Another Planet" (an all-too-fun The Only Ones cover), Blink fans aren't getting anything too over-their-heads. Rest assured that this Greatest Hits is the ultimate reflection of Blink 182 at their best.


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