Blink-182 [ARCHIVED] Band • Page 358

By no means knocking their achievements, fantastic sales, but they were a band you knew of if you listened to emo/screamo/post hardcore/whatever you want to call it. They were a never a band that were a known commodity outside of that scene. AAR were a much more popular band from the get go, and still are.

 

They were absolutely known outside of that scene. They were very popular on MTV and Fuse during that era of 2004-2006 and the entire "go up against Neo for the number one album in the country" thing was definitely a thing. They were not as popular as AAR, they were very, very big for a moment in time. IOYWL debuted at #3 on the Billboard charts, you don't do that in 2006 without being known outside one scene (Thursday peaked at #7, that same year TBS hit #3 as well). Even FF hit #23. They were big.

As someone that spent most of 2004 and 2005 making fun of that song that was everywhere, they were absolutely a big band for a little moment in time. AAR were more popular, no doubt, but you're flat out wrong about HH's success.

 

Whatever you say, but I have no doubt you would struggle to find someone whose music taste wasn't rooted in that scene that has any idea who they are or could name one of their songs.

 

I have no doubt that you would have no problem playing the single for plenty of people from that era and get a reaction even if they couldn't name the actual band. It's why they're still featured in Buzzfeed articles all these years later. You're grossly underestimating how big that band was for a moment in time. That scene was big. That band was big.

 

I fail to see how an article on Buzzfeed featuring a handful of niche lyrics (some reaching beyond that) from niche bands (obviously some reach far beyond that again), some plenty smaller than Hawthorne Heights, is in any way relevant to the discussion. The Spill Canvas are on there too, and I couldn't find you a single person who wasn't into this kind of music that had any idea who they were if I tried.

 

Here how about this: I've dedicated 20 years of my life to this and know what I'm fucking talking about. The band literally sold millions of records. God damn, just stop arguing, you're wrong.

 

Not entirely sure why you seem upset, but the point remains: that article holds zero weight and was a poor example of the argument you're trying to make. I stand by the assessment that HH were never able to elevate themselves beyond being a very large niche band, something I believe most would agree is accurate.

But enough on this topic. I've had enough debates with you over the last decade plus to know that you just can't win.

 

Makes you wonder how Blink would have charted and sold had they stayed together and released a follow up album to Untitled in 2006. Oh well. I would quote Cher here, but I will spare everyone of that lyric.

 

Why would you quite Cher? She's an amazing lady.

 

Ha! You caught me before my edit. See with the edit button, "I can turn back time".

Shoot me now.

 

Yes, it was HH v. Neo for #1 album in the country and people were hiding Neo CD's at Best Buy so you couldn't find it. It was actually semi-controversial if I remember correctly.

 

Yep, I broke the story and was the one that published the emails to the street team that said to do it. And then the non-denial-denial from the label. It was a mess. Covered on MTV news, all over Fuse, Rolling Stone. The band did an arena tour with Fall Out Boy (and AAR) in 2006 — and now barely are selling 100 tickets to shows.

 

Tony must've loved you for that haha

 

One of the many times he either threatened to sue me or pull ads from my website.

Fuck that guy. Haha.

Hey, this lives!

The REAL Manifesto

Due to recent events we have decided to leave Victory Records. Our departure is anything but amicable. We have decided to leave Victory, in part due to the actions of the man who sits at the head of the label, Tony Brummel. Tony Brummel is a man that cares more about his ego and bank account than the bands themselves.

Many of you are familiar with the greed driven letters sent out by Mr. Brummel: his manifesto calling rock supporters to arms and virtual declaration of war on hip-hop and Ne-Yo done under the guise of a band
message; as well as the “street-team” letter which instructed people to re-arrange our CDs, putting them in higher visibility areas in stores. Unfortunately, the head of street-team, Abby Valentine, who
understandably resigned following the incident, took the fall for this.
At the time of the letters we were branded as racists by some, all over a letter we did NOT write, targeting a genre which we have NOTHING against whatsoever. Because of these letters, our second album debuted at #3 on the charts, an incredible feat, which would normally be cause for joy, but now is tainted much like Barry Bonds’ statistics.

When questioned about the letters Tony was more upset that we had told the press that he actually wrote the letters (not us) because he was more worried about “rumors” surrounding Taking Back Sunday and Thursday’s exoduses being justified than the credibility and reputation of his current biggest band.

Couple these letters with him threatening the head program director at Q101 in Chicago for putting the new Taking Back Sunday song into rotation to the point in which the program director pulls “Saying Sorry” from rotation and you can see why we would more than question whether or not the head of our label cares about us or his own ego more.

Tony is a man whose greed knows no bounds. After selling more than 1.2 million copies of The Silence In Black and White and If Only You Were Lonely, we have never seen a single dollar in artist royalties from Victory Records. Tony will claim that we have not “recouped,” a term used by those in the music business which means the label has spent more money in advertising than has been made by CD sales. In fact questionable accounting practices are the culprit and we are in fact owed substantial amounts of money much like audits from Taking Back Sunday, Thursday and Atreyu have uncovered.

You may be wondering, why now? Why did they wait three years before saying something? Why did they sound happy in that interview??? Like being in an abusive relationship, we let certain things slide as
we were afraid, as many of the bands on Victory are, to stick our neck out for fear of being “beaten,” in this case represented by the threat of not being promoted as has been the case with certain bands on
the roster. We’re done being abused. The reasons stated above represent the final straw in a huge pile of hay that broke our backs.

Undoubtedly Tony will proclaim that we are ungrateful and our success was due solely to “his” promotional efforts. In reality, promotion is only a portion of the equation in a bands success. Even then, in our case especially, promotional efforts can be attributed the hard work of the band and staff at Victory, many of whom recently resigned or were fired due to differences with Tony. Non-stop touring, dedicated
fans and songs (we challenge Tony to sell over 1 million blank CDs) account for the rest of the equation.

We’ve accomplished more in three years than most bands do in a lifetime and for that we are extremely grateful and consider ourselves very fortunate. Our situation with Tony Brummel is indicative of issues
that all bands on Victory Records encounter on some level or another.

We have decided to remove ourselves from the negative situation so that we can continue to do what we love best and focus on writing and playing music to people that care about what we have created.

Hawthorne Heights

 

So sad to see so many bands on Victory had to sue their way out of contract/have some sort of controversy attached to it. Didn't they all see what was happening to the bands on the label before them? Did they think that they would be any different?

 

i couldn't name one HH song besides that Ohio one, and even then i have no idea what the hell it sounds like lol.

 

Jesus, how old are you guys? I couldn't roam the hallways in middle school/high school between 04-07 without someone talking about HH.

 

I'm 24 so it was right around that time.. I knew one girl who listened to them, but other than that, nothing. I mean i remember them being on MTV and shit, but they just weren't my thing and none of my friends listened to them.

Edit: now that I'm checking them out on Spotify, I totally forgot about "Saying Sorry". I remember really liking it when it came out.

Oh right, blink forum:
I still can't believe that TOYPAJ deluxe version has never been released to online music stores.. Those bonus tracks are too good and important to blinks discography. Plus, it feels so 2006 to still have to be listening to those tracks through YouTube

 

People around here knew Ohio Is For Lovers but almost no one really talked about them. Even the song was kind of treated as a joke, and this area was very into that scene in those years.

 

So Blink-182, am I right?!

Next month, I'm going to LA to see The Matches with my three brothers. The venue is like 5 minutes from where Blink filmed the "What's My Age Again?" video. You bet your asses I'm goin there!

 

Why the hell would you do that?

 

Haha cause I only have them on CDs now which are at my parents house and never put them on my new laptop. What's a better option?

 

Having a music collection!

 

I have to go back to la some day and do more blink tours.

 

Hurm.... Age 40+ here... Ive heard of HH, sure... If Ohio is the song that everyone knows, and that was the biggest....

I just you tubed it - and honestly, I've never heard it. I don't think I've heard a HH song, at all.... weird, that I <know> the name of the band, heard it o nthe radio, I guess, but when the song would start, i guess I turned it off.

What years were they big? Perhaps I was out of the music scene at that point.