Recently, at the Grammy Awards, punk rock band Blink-182 announced its decision to get back together after a three-year hiatus.

It’s not surprising at all that the band decided to get back together. For years, magazine lists have been screaming that Blink should reunite. Their songs are still widely played on radio stations and iPods alike. Drummer Travis Barker’s accident, while depressing, also managed to act as a public relations event. The catastrophic accident put Barker back in the public eye.

With that much exposure and public sympathy, who could resist an opportunity to further their career?

However, I feel that Blink’s crowd isn’t around anymore. Although I, like many other college students, appreciate their music, I just feel that their future music will not appeal to as many people as before.

Their self-titled and most recent album came out in 2003. Although it was a good listen, as was 1999’s “Enema Of The State,” the catchy, pop-punk hits such as “All the Small Things,” “Adam’s Song” and “What’s My Age Again?” remind most college students of their middle school years. Songs like these were appreciated in the late ’90s, but since beguiling songs already fill the airwaves, I don’t think Blink-182 stands a chance at climbing to the top again.

Most bands reinvent their sound after taking a break. Whichever way blink changes their music, if they do, it is sure to isolate some of their fan base. If they take a more rock-based edge, the band is sure to lose a majority of their supporters that admire them for their punk attitudes and garb.

Now that a majority of their original fans are older, the chances that they still disrespect authority and seek to rebel from society are slim to none. If the band suddenly adds more punk to its music, their competition with today’s most popular bands will be intense.

Bands like Fall Out Boy, Hellogoodbye and Plain White T’s have taken the punk music title from bands like Rancid and the Misfits and changed it to suit the popular definition of punk – a mixture of pop hooks and singers wearing tight pants.

All in all, Blink-182 is a great band. Unfortunately, I don’t think they will be able to reclaim their place as punk rock kings.