Following in the footsteps of band-mate Travis Barker’s 2014 book, Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus tells his life story in his new memoir, FAHRENHEIT 182.

If anything, the story of Blink 182 has enough ups, downs, and drama to fill several books, but Mark managed to fit the story of the band into four hundred pages (or 7+ hours if you listened to it like myself).

Mark goes through his childhood, his drive to be in a band, and early musical influences. There’s the story about meeting Tom Delonge and forming Blink 182 along with the band’s original drummer Scott Raynor. With the group’s meteoric rise, tensions within the group developed leading to the ousting of Raynor and the arrival of Travis Barker, the band’s second and current drummer. Mark goes through the arrival of their breakthrough record Enema of the State and their subsequent struggle to evolve in the face of studio pressure to keep the funny, catchy hits coming.

I really enjoyed the bits about the crafting of their 2003 self-titled (or untitled, depending on who you ask) record, a creatively rich album that had arrived on the heels of Tom and Travis’ side project Boxcar Racer; a creative outlet for Tom that would create the first of many rifts between him and Mark. Mark discusses the difficult years that would follow as the band would go on hiatus before re-forming after Travis’ near death experience to release 2011’s Neighborhoods, an album that by all intents and purposes never should have arrived given that their relationship had been hanging by a thread.

While Mark and Tom’s relationship is in a very good place today, Mark does not hold back on the disappointment, frustration and anger that he felt toward his best friend over the years. Who could blame him? Tom took the band away from Mark and Travis on two occasions, even if that wasn’t his intent. Mark gets into some heavy subject matter surrounding his deep depression and suicidal ideation; feelings and experiences that were amplified by his 2021 battle with lymphoma; one he ultimately won.

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m terribly biased here in that I’m a massive fan of the band and it was unlikely that I would feel any way but positive about it. I will say that I would have liked more about the Matt Skiba era of the band (2016-2022), but maybe Mark just didn’t have a lot to say about it.

Now, when is Tom’s book coming out?