Always (Blink-182 song)
Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox song "Always" is a song by American rock band Blink-182, released on November 15, 2004 as the fourth and final single from the group's untitled fifth studio album. The song was the lowest charting single from the album, but the song's music video received extensive play on music video channels. Like much of the album, the song shows the band's 80's influences, with the multiple-layered, heavily effected guitars and new wave synthesizers.
The song can also be found on the band's 2006 compilation Greatest Hits.
Background
All three of the band members associated the song with the music of the 1980s. Tom DeLonge, in an interview with MTV News, described the song as a "love song."<ref name="always1">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In another interview with MTV News, DeLonge explained the song and sarcastically addressed the lyrics of the choruses: Template:Cquote
Composition
"Always" was written by bassist Mark Hoppus, drummer Travis Barker, and guitarist Tom DeLonge, while sung by DeLonge and Hoppus and produced by Jerry Finn.<ref name="linernotes"/> The song is composed in the key of B major and is set in the time signature of common time with a tempo of 158 beats per minute. The vocal range spans from A3 to D7.<ref name="sheetmusic">Template:Cite book</ref> Referred to as "the '80s song" during production, "Always" features an uptempo backbeat combined with a New Romantic-era keyboard, and pulls from new wave influences.<ref name="always1"/><ref name="linernotes"/> Mike Rampton of Louder Sound described the song as "power-pop perfection".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Andrew Sacher of BrooklynVegan felt that "Always" was the most "Cure-sounding song" on the album, rather than "All of This" which featured Robert Smith. Sacher noted the track as a "a truly sweet post-punk love song".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The song's outro features four separate bass guitars being played; Hoppus uses a Fender Bass VI, a Fender Precision Bass "doing two different things," and a Roland Synth Bass.<ref name="linernotes"/> Barker pulled from Missing Persons for inspiration whilst creating the song's percussion.<ref name="linernotes">Template:Cite AV media notes</ref>
Journalist Joe Shooman pointed out that the song's central guitar riff is remescient of The Only Ones' "Another Girl, Another Planet" (1979).<ref name="shooman123"/> He called it "the thickest-textured Blink track of all-time," and acknowledged its tribute to 1980s synth-driven pop.<ref name=shooman123>Shooman, 2010. pp. 123</ref>
Chart success and live history
"Always" was announced as the fourth and final single from Blink-182 in August 2004. "It's gonna change people's lives and might actually change the world forever," guitarist Tom DeLonge jokingly predicted.<ref name="always">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It was first serviced to radio in mid-November 2004.<ref name="always1"/>
The song was only performed twice in its original release, prior to the band's "indefinite hiatus."<ref name="shooman135"/> It has nonetheless been performed regularly since the band's return.
Reception
A.D. Amorosi of The Philadelphia Inquirer, in his 2003 review of Blink-182, called the song "contagious."<ref name="TPI">Template:Cite news</ref> Consequence of Sound, in a 2015 top 10 of the band's best songs, ranked it as number four, calling it "far and away the best track on the album."<ref name=cos>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Stereogum and Kerrang both named "Always" as Blink-182's eighth-best song.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Music video
The music video for "Always" was directed by Joseph Kahn. The group shot it while on tour in Australia in mid-2004, at the same studio space used by the Wiggles.<ref name="yt">Template:Cite AV mediaTemplate:Cbignore</ref> It features Australian pop singer Sophie Monk. The video is displayed as three horizontal panels,<ref name="shooman135"/> in which Monk flirts with DeLonge, Hoppus and Barker. However, the panels sever the onscreen participants in three. Monk appears as a fractured whole, while parts of the band members combine to make one character.<ref name="always1"/> The trio's characters attempt to plead with Monk, trying to repair a damaged relationship, which are depicted through fights, arguments, and "the occasional making-up/making-out," which is handled by Barker.<ref name=shooman135>Shooman, 2010. pp. 135-136</ref> In reference to the video, DeLonge said "It's like doing an algebraic formulation on paper when you watch it. It's the same kind of feeling [...] but it's rad."<ref name="always1"/> Bassist Mark Hoppus called it the most technically complicated video the band ever had to shoot, as it required choreographed positioning in real time.<ref name="yt"/> The video was photographed by Brad Rushing and edited by David Blackburn who won the MVPA Best Editing Award for his work.
The song was a hit on music video channels,<ref name="shooman135"/> where it was among the most-played on Fuse, MTV2 and MuchMusic into January 2005.<ref name="always chart">Template:Cite news</ref>
Track listing
- The two live tracks were originally broadcast live on The WB's Pepsi Smash concert series.
Personnel
Per the Blink-182 liner notes.<ref name="linernotes"/>
Blink-182
- Tom DeLonge – guitars, vocals
- Mark Hoppus – bass guitar, Fender Bass VI, bass synthesizer, vocals
- Travis Barker – drums, cabasa, tambourine
Additional personnel
- Roger Joseph Manning, Jr. – keyboards
Charts
| Chart (2004) | Peak position |
|---|---|
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| scope="row"Template:Single chart | |
| US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)<ref name="Modern Rock Tracks">Template:Cite magazine</ref> | 39 |
Certifications
Template:Certification Table Top Template:Certification Table Entry Template:Certification Table Bottom
Release history
| Country | Date | Format | Label | Template:Abbr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | August 16, 2004 | Alternative radio | Geffen | <ref name="AltRadio">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> |
| November 15, 2004 |