After Midnight

The last single to feature founding member Tom DeLonge until his return in 2022.

Last updated 30 September 2026

"After Midnight" is a song by American rock band Blink-182, released on September 6, 2011 as the second single from their sixth studio album, Neighborhoods. The track originated from drummer Travis Barker's "Travis Beat," which he presented to guitarist Tom DeLonge and bassist Mark Hoppus; the trio completed the song in a last-minute writing session just three hours after hearing the demo.

While recorded primarily in separate studios during the long-delayed album process, this specific track came together quickly when the band regrouped following the cancellation of a European tour. Lyrically, DeLonge and Hoppus wrote separately but both centered on romance, depicting two broken individuals falling in love. The song is a midtempo anthem in A major at 84 beats per minute.

Quick Facts

Artist

Blink-182

Album

Neighborhoods

Released

September 6, 2011

Recorded

April–July 2011

Studio

Opra Music Studios, Los Angeles
Henson Studios, Los Angeles
Neverpants Ranch, San Diego

Length

3:25

Label

Interscope

Writer

Tom DeLonge
Mark Hoppus
Travis Barker

Lore & Background

The creation of "After Midnight" emerged from the intense pressure of finishing the long-delayed album, Neighborhoods. After years of recording in separate studios and facing numerous delays, the label set a hard deadline for the group. This urgency forced Blink-182 to cancel their European tour in April 2011 so they could regroup for a final writing session. It was during this high-stakes period that drummer Travis Barker introduced his "Travis Beat" demo to the band.

Mark Hoppus recalled it as a rare moment where "everybody just had a bunch of ideas all at once, and it came together pretty quickly." Within two or three hours, the song's structure was nearly complete. DeLonge specifically aimed for a vibe similar to their 2004 single "I Miss You," incorporating references to that track as well as "Always" and "All of This." He joked about the process, noting how he and Hoppus wrote lyrics in different places but ended up with matching romantic themes: "We end up writing super romantic songs. And I think it worked out really good on this one."

Reader's Guide

Listeners can find "After Midnight" as the second single from Neighborhoods, released on September 6, 2011. The song premiered on Zane Lowe's program on Radio 1 at 7:45 pm that same day. To celebrate, the band launched a minigame on get182.com where users had to get the number 182 to download the track.

Fans could also catch live performances on Jimmy Kimmel Live! (October 3, 2011) and Conan (December 8, 2011). The music video, directed by Isaac Rentz, was released on January 6, 2012, featuring actors Garret Camilleri and Valorie Curry as lovers escaping a youth psychiatric ward, intercut with the band performing in a massive wooden blimp hangar built in the 1940s. The video was shot on November 30, 2011, in Tustin, California.

Commercially, the song debuted at number 88 on the US Hot 100 and peaked at number seven on the Alternative Songs chart, spending 20 weeks there. It also reached number 20 on the Hot Rock Songs chart and number seven on the Rock Digital Songs chart. In Canada, it hit number 16 on the Active Rock chart.