Cheshire Cat is the debut studio album by American rock band Blink-182 (then known as simply Blink), released on February 17, 1995, by Cargo Music. The trio, composed of guitarist Tom DeLonge, bassist Mark Hoppus, and drummer Scott Raynor, formed in 1992 and recorded three demos that impressed the San Diego-based Cargo label. The album captures the band at a formative and early stage, blending power-chord riffs, brisk tempos, and melodic hooks with irreverent humor and juvenile antics.

Recorded under tight time constraints mainly at Westbeach Recorders in Los Angeles, the trio laid down the sixteen tracks with minimal overdubs, emphasizing spontaneity and rawness. Influenced by punk stalwarts such as NOFX, the Vandals, and the Descendents, the band injected humor and personality into every track, from cheeky joke songs to more earnest explorations of relationships and self-doubt. It was produced by Otis Barthoulameu, of local act Fluf. The album was originally released with the band's name as Blink, until an Irish band of the same name threatened legal action, after which the band appended "-182" to the end of their name.

Cheshire Cat attracted fans with its speed, humor, and accessibility, and was released as the genre was breaking on a national level. While an indie release with limited initial distribution, the album sold steadily, fueled by grassroots promotion in skate magazines and local radio play. "M+M's" and "Wasting Time" were released as singles, while lead-off track "Carousel" became a fan favorite. The band supported the album by touring clubs across the U.S. and Australia. Cheshire Cat is cited by bands and fans as an iconic release, and has sold over 250,000 copies as of 2001.

Background

thumb|Blink at the Gorilla Pit in 1993

San Diego–based trio Blink-182, formed in 1992, first promoted itself by recording lo-fi demos to distribute to local record stores and at concerts. The three eventually were playing concerts at local venues such as SOMA, which alerted local independent record label Cargo Music. Pat Secor, who funded the trio's demo Buddha and was the former boss of Hoppus, pulled for Blink's move to Cargo through a roommate who knew Cargo executives. Otis Barthoulameu, guitarist of local Cargo Music-signed act Fluf, saw potential in the young band and pushed them from the beginning. Eric Goodis, president of Cargo, wanted to diversify the label by incorporating different styles of music.

Goodis invited the three musicians into his office and made the band an offer: he wanted to "start small" by releasing a 7-inch with the band. DeLonge has said that Goodis did not favor the band, and invented the Grilled Cheese imprint of Cargo in order to keep them away from the main label. The Cheshire Cat sessions were to be the last performance with the band for Raynor, whose family had moved to Reno, Nevada. Raynor stayed with his sister for the summer of 1994 in order to rehearse for the recording of their debut album. The band rehearsed in DeLonge's garage, where they wrote "M+M's".

Recording and production

thumb|Jeff Forrest at Doubletime Studios, where the band went for additional recording

The deal was completed and Blink immediately set off to record their debut at the famous Westbeach Recorders in Los Angeles. Despite the fact that the band were now in possession of a contract with the biggest indie label in San Diego, Cargo were still not in a position to offer more than a few days' worth of finances to record the trio's first efforts for their new home. The band made reservations at local hotel not far from the studio for a room with two double beds. Despite the request, the band were stuck with one king-size bed, with the three musicians sleeping three-across in one bed. DeLonge recorded through Bad Religion guitarist Gurewitz's amp, and also accidentally broke his microphones. According to Jeff Forrest, the band eventually decamped to more familiar surroundings of Doubletime Studios in Santee, California, where they recorded Buddha. The trio booked the studio for one week to allow time for additional recording. Still, recording progressed quickly at Doubletime according to Forrest, and the record was mixed as they went along. Despite the lost time and the pressure of limited resources, the recording went well.

thumb|The album takes its name after the [[Cheshire Cat from the Lewis Carroll novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.]]

The album's title and cover artwork originated from a calendar DeLonge had purchased. His day job in the first years of the band was hauling bags of concrete. While at work at an industrial park warehouse, a foreign salesman going door-to-door approached him with the calendar, which showcased photographs of cats. The band's request to use the photo was denied by the calendar company, however, the band employed Cargo's art department to computer enhance the photo until the band was safe from copyright infringement.

Music

DeLonge, at the time of its release, called the album's musical style "not punk rock [...] We're nothing like the Sex Pistols, but our music kind of flowed from this genre of fast music with melody." The Los Angeles Times described the album's lyrical themes in a 1995 profile: "Most of Blink-182's songs poke fun at their own youthful escapades, focusing on raging hormones, candy, masturbation, intestinal gas and other topics of interest to adolescents." It contains skate punk influences and has been described as "a satisfyingly fast-assed punk song in the vein of NOFX with some very adept dynamic breakdowns."

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Cheshire Cat was released through Cargo Music on February 17, 1995, on cassette. Initially, Goodis bet DeLonge the album would only sell 3,000 copies; by 2001, over 250,000 copies of the debut were sold. As an independent release, very few reviews were published upon initial release. Retrospective reviewer Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic gave the album three out of five stars and wrote that "the group is rather scattershot here, hitting the target as often as they miss it," noting that the release is better suited to more involved fans. Rolling Stone would rate the record at two and a half stars in 2001, describing it as "slapped together lilting melodies and racing beats in an attempt to connect emo and skate punk, a sort of pop hardcore." At Fuse, it was list as one of the "strongest" pop-punk debut albums by Marie Sheyman, who added "they made the punk rock they loved even catchier".

left|thumb|upright|Cargo promoted the album with adverts in skateboarding magazines, such as [[Thrasher (magazine)|Thrasher.]]

Cheshire Cat was a strong seller for an independent band, despite the fact that popularity grew in the form of unauthorized CD copies across the country. The band were acquiring legions of new fans and radio play, and the buzz created by the album inspired manager Rick DeVoe to call Hoppus, wanting to manage the band. DeLonge threw together a crude "press kit" for DeVoe, which included photocopies of fanzines, reviews, and some cartoons drawn by DeLonge. The attention also brought forth calls from Rick Bonde, of the Tahoe Agency, a booking agency based out of Lake Tahoe that worked with big punk and ska names such as Sublime. The husband-and-wife team of Rick and Jean Bonde, who owned and operated the company, began arranging shows for the band and minitours that gave Blink their first promotion outside of San Diego. The single was a local success and Cargo offered the band a small budget ($10,000) to film a music video. Darren Doane, who had previously worked with MxPx and Pennywise, directed the clip. "We weren't planning on doing anything with that video except hoping it got on a surf video or something," said Hoppus. Meanwhile, the record also drew the attention of an Irish techno band, also named Blink. Unwilling to engage in a legal battle, the band agreed to change their name.

The band also received their first profile in the Los Angeles Times in December 1995, which praised the album but questioned their authenticity and "punk" label. "I mean, is it the retro rock of England's Exploited, the anarchy of the Ramones or the political focus of Bad Religion? Punk has gone off in so many different directions that you can't really classify it anymore," DeLonge said. "People said Elvis Costello was punk when he first came out."

Touring and GoodTimes

thumb|Blink-182 at the Showcase Theater in [[Corona, California, in 1995.]]

The band expanded their fan-base outside of San Diego by embarking on their first national tour shortly after the release of Cheshire Cat. Alongside 7 Seconds and Unwritten Law, the band travelled in a small convoy of cars, being too young and broke to afford a van. Unwritten Law loaned the band their van, named "The Cock", for their first out-of-town gig in Reno, Nevada, and it broke before they were able to make it back.

The GoodTimes Tour of October 1995, featuring the aforementioned bands and Sprung Monkey, introduced the trio to the south and east and was the band's first national tour. The trip was not without its incidents: DeLonge was arrested for underage drinking on Halloween 1995 in Jacksonville, Florida, and on another occasion, a small riot broke out between bouncers using excessive force and fans. The trio desperately wanted to continue on the second leg of the tour in Australia but lacked the funds; the members of Pennywise helped out and bought the band's plane tickets. Raynor recalled the tour fondly in 2010: "Honestly, the shows went well. We always got a good reaction, and the next time we came around we had more fans and better floors to sleep on — some with carpet!"

Early 1996 saw the three trekking to Alaska to perform and compete in a King of the Hill snowboarding contest. It was the site of an infamous prank fight between the members of the band and Pennywise that ended with local police being called and hotel security banning them. The band's first headlining tour took place afterward, and the following February dates — later dubbed the "Shitty Weather" tour — found the band performing through a harsh rain and snow. By March 1996, major labels began courting the band and the trio signed a joint-venture deal with MCA Records to distribute their sophomore effort, Dude Ranch, to be recorded that winter.

In all, Blink-182 toured the contiguous United States three times; the band also went to Alaska, Australia and Hawaii twice. "It's tiring," DeLonge told Thrasher in November 1996. "Then again, I just remember I used to work at this stupid job. I think about that, and I realize I'm not that bad off."

Track listing

Personnel

Blink

  • Tom DeLonge – guitars, vocals
  • Mark Hoppus – bass, vocals
  • Scott Raynor – drums

Additional performers

  • Matt Houts – introduction on "Ben Wah Balls"

Technical personnel

  • O – production
  • Steve Kravac – engineer
  • Jeff Forrest ("The King of Santee") – mixing engineer
  • Jeff Motch – layout

Charts

Weekly charts

{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders"

|+ Chart performance for Cheshire Cat

! Chart (1996)

! Peak<br />position

|-

! scope="row"| Australian Albums (ARIA)

| style="text-align:center;"| 73

|-

! Chart (2000)

! Peak<br />position

|-

! scope="row"| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)

| style="text-align:center;"| 27

|}

Certifications

Release history

{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders"

|+ Release history and formats for Cheshire Cat

! Region

! Date

! Label

! Format

! Catalog

! Ref.

|-

!scope="row" rowspan="4"|United States

|rowspan="3"|February 17, 1995

|Cargo Music

|rowspan="2"|CD

|CRGD 86136

|rowspan="8"|

|-

|rowspan="3"|Grilled Cheese

|rowspan="3"|GRL-001

|-

|Cassette

|-

|rowspan="2"|1996

|LP

|-

!scope="row"|Japan

|Toy's Factory

|rowspan="3"|CD

|TFCK-88798

|-

!scope="row"|United Kingdom

|1998

|Geffen

|486 136-2

|-

!scope="row"|Russia

|2002

|Universal Music Russia

|486 136-9

|-

!scope="row"|United States

|2010

|Geffen / Universal Music Special Markets

|LP

|B0014942-01

|}

Notes

References

Further reading

<!-- This is a licensed stream for the album, which is allowed under Wikipedia polices -->

  • Cheshire Cat at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)