Machine Gun Kelly and Travis Barker are the two evil geniuses behind the recent resurgence of pop-punk that has taken over every aspect of our lives, and it looks like they’re getting ready to join forces once again.
The two collaborated on “Tickets to My Downfall,” the album completely remade who Kelly is as an artist. While rock had always been a part of what Kelly did on his first four studio albums, “Tickets to My Downfall” turned him from a rapper with some rock influences into a pop-punk superstar.
When the album was released back in January 2020, Kelly visited tattoo artist Chuey Quintanar to get a killer script tattoo to mark the occasion. Now, we’re not saying that Kelly is a superstitious man, but given the massive success of the album he may as well go with what worked the first time, right?
As any successful performer will tell you, if you’re going to repeat what worked before you need to up the stakes, or else people will grow bored with you. So this time there wasn’t just one tattoo, there was a pair of them as Barker joined in on the fun.
We don’t know who did the tattoo just yet as neither musician credited their artist in the photos—CREDIT YOUR ARTIST, PEOPLE!—or when the album will drop, but we know the title, and that’s something. The upcoming album is going to be called “Born With Horns” according to the tattoos.
Now, I don’t want to sound like a conspiracy theorist reading too much into things, but I have a theory about what exactly “Born With Horns” is going to sound like—it’s going to be a ska album. Hear me out.
1. While one may assume that “Born With Horns” is a reference to being a devil, which makes sense because devils are cool, I think it’s a reference to the greatest musical genre of all.
2. The last time Kelly got a tattoo for an album he completely remade his sound.
3. Ska is having a bit of a moment.
4. Travis Barker comes from a ska background. Many of the youngs only know Barker from his time with Blink-182 and the many, many side projects he’s had over the last decade or so. But once upon a time he was known as Baron Von Tito as drummer for a group of superheroes known as The Aquabats.
The BARON VON TITO
It’s undeniable that “Born With Horns” is going to be a ska album. And when it finally comes out you can guarantee millions of kids around the country are going to pick it up pick it up pick it up.
Or, they’re just some cool tattoos, I’m a tinfoil-hat wearing ska evangelist and this has nothing to do with ska. Only time will tell.