Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past year, you have probably heard that Tom Delong had rejoined blink-182, and with that, the punk legends announced a world tour that would span four continents from 2023 going into next year.Â
blink-182
The O2, London – 11 October 2022
Words and Photography:Â Lawrence Potter
As the masses pack into London’s The O2, you can feel the energy buzzing. It’s been almost ten years since we’ve seen a show from the Californian trio in their original form, and it’s a truly special atmosphere this evening that has united a packed house full of fans.
The Story So Far
At around 7:30, we are treated to a fantastic start to the night from The Story So Far, who put on a blinding set that truly set the tone for the whole show. Starting the set with Keep It Up followed by Things I Can’t Change definitely got the crowd in the mood straight away!
After a good 45 minutes of pop-punk goodness, the band end with Big Blind and finally finished with Proper Dose. 
A good start to everyone’s evening at The O2, and after a half-hour intermission, the lights turn to black, and the crowd go absolutely nuts as our headliners, blink-182, hit the stage. Wasting no time, the band go straight into Anthem Part 2, followed up by The Rock Show.
It has to be said that the stage production was second to none tonight. With a giant screen displaying various graphics inspired by the band’s history, blink-182 were also joined by pyros, fire and streamers throughout the whole set. 
blink-182 has certainly had an interesting past since their inception. All three members have had their struggles, whether it be Travis Barker’s plane crash in 2008 or Mark Hoppus’s battle with cancer in 2021, which he managed to beat. It truly counts for something after all these years, that the same three men are leaving it all on the stage at this point in their lives. 
Amongst all the crude jokes by Tom and Mark, along with a few jabs at some of the cities they’ve played, there is a very touching moment later in the evening as the lights dim, and Mark tells the fans about his battle with Lymphoma, overcoming it and how he believes the fans who are making this tour happen are saving his life once again.
This segment goes into the song he wrote about his previous battle with depression, Adam’s Song.
Overall, it was an outstanding night of classic pop punk at its finest, taking us back to our teenage years once again. blink-182 pulled out all the hits, including Feeling This, What’s My Age Again? and I Miss You but also shared some of their new songs, such as Edging and Dance With Me.
The night came to a crescendo with All The Small Things and Dammit, with blink-182 finally ending with a blistering One More Time, the title track from their upcoming album. Tonight made battling London traffic totally worthwhile. You can catch another set from blink-182 at the same venue tonight.
