When they first scored a breakout hit in 1997 with "Dammit," it seemed like Blink-182 would simply be another pop-punk band who had ridden the coattails of Green Day to another anonymous radio smash. But there was something about the potty-mouthed trio that kept people coming back, and the group with the nonsense name ended up becoming one of the more influential rock groups at the turn of the millennium. It helped that they continued to deliver great songs ("All the Small Things," "What's My Age Again?" and "The Rock Show" among them) along with excellent videos (the boy band-skewering "All the Small Things" was a notorious "TRL" staple for a large portion of 2000).
As time progressed, the group became more and more adventurous on record, adding a healthy dose of early adult melancholy and a handful of sonic experiments. Despite it's pun-tastic title and a series of big hooks, 2001's Take Off Your Pants and Jacket is something of a bummer (at least tonally), and the band's self-titled fifth album (which was released on this day in 2003) is mostly filled with New Wave-inspired sounds and profoundly "adult" themes. It sounded like an album made by a band dealing with tumult, so it wasn't particularly surprising when the group announced they were going on hiatus in 2005. It opened the door for a number of side projects (including Angels & Airwaves, +44 and the Transplants), each of which received some degree of success. But the group finally decided to get back together and tour earlier this year, and a new album is coming in 2010. It's safe to say that the fans agreed with the sentiment of Blink-182's "I Miss You," a dramatic, Cure-inspired ballad that stands as one of the band's biggest hits.