Blink-182 — Nine (LP)

Pop-punk has always owed a quiet debt to the emotional directness of the Blues — that same gut-punch honesty runs straight through Nine, Blink-182's 2019 Columbia Records debut. Recorded with an arsenal of collaborators and producers, it's a leaner, darker record than anything the band had attempted before, swapping the pratfall humour of their early years for something rawer and more confessional. "Darkside" and "Happy Days" carry that tension beautifully — catchy enough to lodge in your skull, bruised enough to mean it. Mark Hoppus, Travis Barker, and Matt Skiba sound like a band that knows exactly what it wants to say. Pressed on 140-gram vinyl in a gatefold jacket, this is a snapshot of one of rock's great survivor stories.

Tracklist

1. The First Time
2. Happy Days (2:59)
3. Heaven
4. Darkside (3:00)
5. Blame It on My Youth (3:06)
6. Generational Divide (0:49)
7. Run Away
8. Black Rain
9. I Really Wish I Hated You (3:11)
10. Pin the Grenade
11. No Heart to Speak Of
12. Ransom
13. On Some Emo Shit
14. Hungover You
15. Remember to Forget Me