"Not Now" is a song by American rock band Blink-182. It was released in November 2005 as the sole single from the group's first compilation album, Greatest Hits (2005), through Geffen Records. "Not Now" explores concepts of death and its impact on those one leaves behind, and was written from the perspective of an out-of-body experience. Stylistically, it builds heavily around the band's trademark power chords and guitar riffs, and also employs a church organ to achieve a funereal atmosphere.
"Not Now" shares writing credits between the band's three members: guitarist Tom DeLonge, bassist Mark Hoppus, and drummer Travis Barker. It was produced and mixed by Jerry Finn. "Not Now" would be the band's last single before their four-year hiatus from 2005 to 2009. As the band had broken up by its release, the song's music video recycles clips from their past videos, concerts, and tours.
"Not Now" was originally recorded by the band for its self-titled 2003 album.[2] According to DeLonge, the song is about an out-of-body experience after death,[3] and being able to visualize your loss and its impact on loved ones. An early rendition, captured on a webcam, depicts DeLonge working through developing the song's words; an early rendition went "let's dance until I’m gone / I'm here hold on / to me, goodbye I'm leaving."[4]
Composition
The song's guitar riffs were compared to the Descendents by journalist Joe Shooman, and are interspersed by verses containing a church organ.[5] Matt Mitchell of Paste also noted the similarities to the Descendents, dubbing the song "a tight, riff-heavy, pop-punk performance".[6]
Release and commercial performance
"Not Now" was first released for download on the nascent iTunes Music Store on the day of the album's release.[7] It was included as a bonus track on the UK edition of Blink-182, although it is unclear why it was originally left off the track listing of the international edition.[5] The song was also included on Atticus: ...Dragging the Lake, Vol. 3 (2005), a compilation album released by DeLonge's clothing company, Atticus Clothing.[8] Both of these physical releases are a slightly shorter edit, where the bridge is shortened, making it roughly 15 seconds shorter.
When the song was selected to be a single for the band's post-breakup Greatest Hits album, it ran into trouble with the trio's management, which were split between DeLonge (who remained with original Blink manager Rick DeVoe) and Hoppus/Barker (who switched to Irving Azoff to handle their new project, +44).[9] The Azoff camp lobbied for the Hoppus-led "Another Girl, Another Planet" as the lead single, while DeVoe argued for "Not Now", which eventually won.[9] "Not Now" was released to radio on October 18, 2005.[10]
"Not Now" received positive marks from contemporary music critics. Kieron Passaway in Kerrang! called it among the band's best, observing, "You can feel and hear the friction in the track [...] DeLonge appears to be pushing a separate sonic agenda which he eventually realized with Angels & Airwaves, while vocalist/bassist Mark Hoppus and drummer Travis Barker are busy reinforcing the trademark Blink sound."[12] Matt Mitchell of Paste interpreted it as suggestive of the band's impending demise, writing, "DeLonge sings from the perspective of the song's protagonist, who, on the brink of death, much like the band at the time, keeps his loved ones close and promises to wait for them once he passes on."[13]
Music video
The music video features clips of the band's past music videos, concerts, and tours.[14] There are two released versions of this video, but the only significant difference between them is that different clips from all of their videos are used.
There is also a third, possibly unofficial, video; this is seen on Australia's Channel [V]. In this version, the video is black and white and is made up of some of the band's previous music videos as well as some footage of their live performance in the 2000 Big Day Out during the bridge of the song. [citation needed]
^Steinberger, Marc; DeLonge, Tom (March 18, 2004). “TOM'S ACOUSTIC RECORDING.” (Web video). MCA Records. Archived from the original on May 4, 2006. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
