Live Review: Blink-182, The Vandals & Sharks

Opening for Blink-182 were UK quartet Sharks, who provided a dull, Gallows-esque performance, awkwardly belting out cringe-worthy, off-key vocals against painstakingly out-of-time drumming. Shortly following was more purist '80s punk four-piece The Vandals who brought their, albeit a little revised, DIY ethic to the stage. While The Vandals' signature fast-paced thrash aesthetic was slowed down slightly to accommodate their ages, they seemed to warm up the audience and inspire slam-dancing throughout the crowd.

Would Blink-182's performance evoke a sense of 'groundhog day', given the trio had been veterans of the pop-punk game for over 20 years and had overcome an eight-year split? Surprisingly, the Californians' live show resuscitated their immature '90s spirit and proved that some musicians are not affected by the constraints of age. Though Travis Barker resigned from the tour last minute given a phobia of flying, he was replaced by the exceptionally talented Brooks Wackerman, who was able to showcase his incredible drumming abilities, especially during the trio's tracks off their self-titled album, which features several fast and reckless drumming sequences. Opening with Feelin This and following through with earlier classics Rock Show, What's My Age Again? and Down, the crowd seemed disappointingly unenthused, excluding a few hardcore, circle-pitting fans. Tom DeLonge channelled his 'Blink-182' persona and Mark Hoppus provided an intermittent one-man stand-up comedy routine, constantly engaging in pointless juvenile banter and yelling things like “I need a massage… on my dick!”

Although the band dabbled in some newer work such as revival track, Up All Night, which was not able to sustain the audience, the band impressively affixed to their work from the early 2000s, even playing a very violent and heedless rendition of Carousel off their 1994 demo record, Buddha, which sent old-school fans into a frenzy. Towards the end of their convincing and nostalgic set, the trio performed an acoustic rendering of Reckless Abandon and the delicate Robert Smith-featured track, All Of This, which induced a few tears throughout the previously detached crowd.