Dammit 182 – An analysis of Dammit by Blink 182

If anyone can claim to be a fan of Blink 182, then they can honestly say they are a fan of the song “Dammit” made famous by Blink’s album Dude Ranch in 1997. Even with four subsequent albums, the band continues. performing this song over and over again at the request of millions of fans around the world. Personally, I’ve seen live footage of Blink 182 performing “Dammit” on numerous occasions and the crowd goes completely wild.

So what makes this song so popular? Another good question is “Why do so many bands try the same style as ‘Dammit’ and fail with the popularity of Blink 182 growing every day?”

First of all, always remember that the music industry is a cutthroat business, and in many cases it just isn’t fair. Many of the reasons bands like Blink 182 succeed or die have nothing to do with music.

Considering that tons of pop rock bands have come and gone since the beginning of Blink 182, what makes “the blink” so much more dynamic than some of these other bands? Here are some reasons why Blink is successful with extremely simple songs and the like.

1. When Blink 182 finds a good hook, they repeat it over and over again.

Blink 182 have a good talent for finding catchy hooks from overused and simple chord progressions, and once they discover that hook, it repeats itself. Let’s take “Damn” for example. If you notice in the verses, Mark Hoppus sings the same melody for almost every line! I mean, nobody really cares, since that’s the hook of the verse and it works really well. The same goes for choirs. When Blink 182 sings “And it has happened one more time. I will turn to a friend, one who understands, see through the master plan …” those phrases are all the same tune with only slight variation.

2. Each phrase is played a comfortable number.

Some pop rock bands have trouble noticing when something is too long. After a while, you’ll start to realize that some riffs just can’t stand being played four times without ruining the momentum of the song. Conversely, some riffs end too quickly leaving the listener “hanging” so to speak. On “Dammit” Tom Delonge wrote a very simple lead riff that sets the mood for the rest of the melody. Blink 182’s intro riff turns out to be a very comfortable period of time in which the listener won’t get bored or feel like they’ve been put down when the next sentence begins.

3. The theme is something that most listens to.

This is quite subjective, as it could be argued about popular bands singing about death or violence or other things that most of us have never been exposed to. However, Blink 182 sings about relationships with people. How often is the average person in a relationship? How about every day? “Damn” is no different either. He’s making fun of a breakup and how awkward it would be to see an “ex” with someone else. Next time you hear some of the top bands on the radio, pay attention to their theme. Most of the time, it is too generic to apply to anyone. And a lot of that is decided by their contracts with the record label.

4. Each song is a progression.

I’m not talking about the chord progressions for each section of the song. I mean very subtle additions to songs that most people don’t even notice. Does anyone notice that in the final chorus of “Dammit”, Blink 182 has a second lead guitar riff? I’m not referring to the rhythm of the guitar that follows Hoppus’s bass part or Delonge’s signature soloist that begins the song, but to a higher part. Listen again and you will notice.

Dammit’s hidden guitar riff is only there for the purpose of creating an uphill progression of the song, because when something is different as the song continues, people want to keep listening. So for every band that thinks their song is made with intro / verse / chorus / intro / verse / chorus / bridge / chorus, they need to think again. Only the best songs add some subtlety to attract the listener for longer and Blink has always been able to take advantage of that.

There are many other reasons that bands fail to succeed in the pop rock genre and many of them don’t necessarily have anything to do with songwriting! It could simply be the fact that many of them weren’t very original, or good, or dedicated. Whatever the reason, these points could play a huge role in why Blink 182’s fame grew so quickly and why it will never fade away.