Cali-punk smackdown: Green Day vs. Blink-182

Breakout success

This one’s almost a toss-up. Both bands achieved massive international success with their first major-label albums: Green Day’s “Dookie,” released in 1994, and Blink’s “Enema of the State,” released in ’99, both sold more than 15 million copies worldwide and catapulted each band to superstar status. However, we have to give Green Day the edge, both in terms of paving the way for other punk-pop bands (including Blink) at a time when grunge dominated the airwaves, and because “Dookie” produced five hit singles (including three that topped the modern rock chart), while “Enema” only yielded three.

Advantage: Green Day