Fans kept eyes open for Blink-182

Jennifer Kho

COSTA MESA -- Armed with blankets, chairs and coolers, more than 200

teenagers waited up to 12 hours to see Blink-182 at Wherehouse Music on

Saturday.

“They are so cute and funny and I love their music,” said Harmony

Larsen, a 19-year-old Laguna Niguel resident who joined the line at 9

a.m. and was doing her homework during the wait. “I waited 11 hours

Monday to buy their CD and get a wristband so I could see them today.

It’s worth it.”

The first 500 people to buy the band’s new CD, “Take Off Your Pants

and Jacket,” at the Wherehouse Music store on Harbor Boulevard got

wristbands guaranteeing a place in line to meet Blink-182.

Toward the back of the wristbanded line, Evangelina Garibay, a

20-year-old Santa Ana resident, said she has every Blink-182 album.

“I’m willing to get sunburned from head to toe to see them,” she said,

squinting in the sun. “They are awesome, a great band. They are totally

crazy, and I just love them.’

Markelle Pellet, a 13-year-old Mission Viejo resident, arrived at the

store at 5 a.m. to be first in line. Pellet and her friends also waited

for 18 hours to be the first to buy the CD on Monday.

“Their style is not too loud, not too slow,” Pellet said. “My whole

room is covered with Blink-182 posters.”

Dennis Hicks, district manager for Wherehouse Music, said he was not

surprised that so many fans lined up so early.

“They love this band,” he said. “They connect on a personal, emotional

level with the band and they want to see them.”

The band -- consisting of guitarist Tom DeLonge, bassist Mark Hoppus

and drummer Travis Barker -- is best known for hits like the Star

98.7-friendly “What’s My Age Again.”

Listening to Blink-182 music played on stereos and showing off their

gear, many fans talked about what they liked most about the band.

“They talk about real life,” said Natalie Burciaga, a 14-year-old

Costa Mesa resident. “They’re not like dumb Britney Spears. And they’re

the hottest people on Earth.”

Steven Torices, 15, of Downey, said the band has inspired him to take

bass lessons, among other things.

“They are unique and down to earth and they got me into punk music,”

he said. “They sing about teenagers’ problems, like loneliness, suicide,

dating, being a child with divorced parents -- all kinds of teenage

issues.”

Jason Lloyd, a 20-year-old Hacienda Heights resident, said he rushed

to the store from a funeral and had to find a ride because his car was

wrecked last week.

“I couldn’t miss it,” he said. “I like the band’s pop-punk style and

the music is also funny. I’ve liked them for years and years. They are

the first punk band I liked and, basically, my sense of humor and sense

of style have evolved from them.”