Two decades into a gigantically successful career with Blink-182, Box Car Racer and Angels & Airwaves, Tom DeLonge has finally found his true songwriting voice. Here we get under the skin of a closed-minded punk kid turned thoughtful muso...

“ They say Einstein died while he was still trying to figure out gravity. I think I’m going to die still trying to figure out some of the things about Blink,” Tom DeLonge tells TG, deep in thought as he assesses the punk trio’s longevity.

While DeLonge ponders how a bunch of suburban brats went on to become million-unit shifting pop-punk kings and eventually experimental rock statesmen, he may want to deconstruct the seismic shifts his own playing has undergone in two decades.

From a punk-obsessed teen concerned only with playing faster and with more distortion than anyone else, to the effects-loving, prog-influenced song- crafter that stands before us, DeLonge’s journey has been as surprising as it has successful.

As Blink headed out on the road to celebrate 20 years of powerchords and dick jokes, we sat down with DeLonge to trace his musical evolution...