Bored to Death (song)

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"Bored to Death"
Single by Blink-182
from the album California
Released April 27, 2016 (2016-04-27)
Format Digital download
Recorded January–March 2016
Foxy Studios
(Woodland Hills, California)
Genre
Length 3:55
Label BMG
Writer(s)
Producer(s) John Feldmann
Blink-182 singles chronology
"After Midnight"
(2011)		 "Bored to Death"
(2016)

"Bored to Death" is a song recorded by American rock band Blink-182 for the group's seventh studio album, California (2016). The song was released as the lead single from California on April 27, 2016 through BMG. "Bored to Death" was written by the band's bassist Mark Hoppus, drummer Travis Barker, guitarist Matt Skiba, and producer John Feldmann. It is Skiba's first single with the band, and the first single to not feature original guitarist and vocalist Tom DeLonge.

The song peaked at number four on Billboard's Alternative Songs chart. It received positive reviews from music critics, who compared it to the band's older sound.

Background

"Bored to Death" originated in the band's first recording session with John Feldmann in January 2016; the band also recorded nearly three other songs on that first day.[1] The chorus was written by Skiba as a response to Hoppus's verse of "us traversing a relationship and kind of navigating through when things get real murky." Skiba elaborated on its meaning an interview: "It's easier to say you're bored, or to be angry, than it is to be sad. To me, that's what that verse and that song represents."[2] Feldmann wrote the first draft of the chorus and presented it to Hoppus, who re-wrote portions and created the line "life is too short to last long." Feldmann noted that although he knew Hoppus, he felt as though he were auditioning for the job as producer. Skiba heard the song and wrote the second verse, singing the vocal take in one pass.[3]

Barker's drumming on the verses was inspired by drum and bass music. "John would be like, 'Trav, do some of that weird shit you play with EDM or rap artists.' And I'd be like, 'OK,'" he said on the recording process.[4] At one point, Barker told Feldmann, "Why don't you give me one minute of click and let me just play whatever the fuck I want?" His improvisational section became the song's conclusion.[3]

Composition

The song's choruses contain the lyrics "Save your breath / I'm nearly bored to death / And fading fast / Life is too short to last long" over Barker's half-time drums. Hoppus and Skiba alternate on lead vocals between verses. The bridge of the song has Hoppus singing of a protagonist, encouraged by friends to approach a girl at a dive bar. The section features strings swelling to a crescendo. As the final chorus begins, Hoppus's vocals are isolated on the first half of the refrain.[5]

Release

The song was scheduled to debut on April 28, 2016 during Kevin and Bean on Los Angeles radio station KROQ, but was moved ahead by one day when the song leaked.[6] Its lyric video was published to YouTube too early by the band's head of marketing. "I found out about it because we had just finished rehearsal and I literally picked up my phone to check my messages there were all these alerts saying 'I love the new Blink song,'" Hoppus said.[5] Disc jockey Stryker premiered the song with Hoppus, Barker, and Skiba in the studio with him.[6]

Commercial performance

"Bored to Death" was first serviced to alternative radio on May 3, 2016.[7] The song was picked up by 57 Mediabase-monitored alternative stations in the US and Canada in its debut week, more than tripling its competition.[8] It debuted at number 18 on Billboard's Alternative Songs chart. Its debut was the group's highest-ever on each chart, and to that point in 2016.[9]

Critical reception

"Bored to Death" received positive reviews from contemporary music critics. Gil Kaufman at Billboard deemed it "a classic tale of teenage yearning, confusion and clumsy flirting."[5] The Houston Chronicle's Mike Damante felt the song was "undeniably Blink," calling it a "catchy summer single that equally showcases the band’s maturity while still tugging at your nostalgia strings."[10] Michelle Geslani of Consequence of Sound wrote that "this comeback single proves they haven’t lost their touch for big, albeit harmless, pop punk hooks."[11] MTV columnist Loren DiBlasi felt it "proves Blink-182's resilience, and undeniable place within the world of pop-punk."[12] Stereogum's Tom Breihan complimented its "grand, surging, arena-style," noting its "massed guitars and vast and heartfelt chorus."[13] August Brown, reporting for the Los Angeles Times, considered the track "a pretty spot-on update of the band's sound, pairing teenage nostalgia and tense drumming with a KROQ-ready chorus."[14]

Jessica Goodman, writing for Entertainment Weekly, gave the song an A-, commenting that "the tune is reminiscent of some of their most beloved tracks,"[15] and Sarah Grant at Rolling Stone opined that the song felt like a sequel to the band's 2001 single "The Rock Show".[16] Jake Bender of #Tealcheese wrote that the song "feels like it's trying way too hard to call back to blink fans from the peak of their popularity (Enema of the State), while combining that sound with the more modern and alternative rock aesthetic of their Self Titled album and Neighborhoods."[17]

Track listing

  • Digital download
  1. "Bored to Death" – 3:55

Charts

Chart (2016) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[18] 50
Scotland (Official Charts Company)[19] 53
UK Rock and Metal (Official Charts Company)[20] 2
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[21] 107
US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[22] 4
US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)[23] 1
US Hot Rock Songs (Billboard)[24] 6
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[25] 21
US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[26] 6

Radio and release history

Country Date Format Label
United States April 27, 2016 Radio debut[6] BMG
United States May 3, 2016 Alternative radio[7] BMG

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2016-05-06". Scottish Singles Top 40.
  19. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2016-05-06" UK Rock Chart. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ "Blink-182 – Chart history" Billboard Alternative Songs for Blink-182. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Blink-182 – Chart history" Billboard Hot Rock Songs for Blink-182. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
  23. ↑ "Blink-182 – Chart history" Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs for Blink-182. Retrieved May 17, 2016.

External links

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