{"id":7684,"date":"2016-05-16T10:05:59","date_gmt":"2016-05-16T14:05:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.altwire.net\/?p=7684"},"modified":"2023-12-06T06:38:05","modified_gmt":"2023-12-06T11:38:05","slug":"twenty-one-pilots-blurryface","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/es\/veintiun-pilotos-cara-borrosa\/","title":{"rendered":"Twenty One Pilots \u2013 \u201cBlurryface\u201d, un a\u00f1o despu\u00e9s"},"content":{"rendered":"

Twenty One Pilots had one of the best years in music with “Blurryface<\/a>“. The duo of Tyler Joseph (vocals, piano, ukulele) and Josh Dun (drums) have built their brand around what critics have labeled \u201cschizophrenic pop\u201d, a sound that jumps from genre to genre with little transition. <\/strong><\/h4>\n

On paper, the description of Twenty One Pilots\u2019 sound may not seem particularly appealing, but the band\u2019s track record is happy to prove you wrong. Since their fourth album <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i> was released a year ago, the band went from having moderate success in the alt-rock sphere to topping the Billboard 200 and and selling out stadiums across the globe. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Despite what may have seemed like a shocking overnight success, Twenty One Pilots\u2019 rise to the top was no accident. The band signed to Fueled by Ramen in 2012, a pop-punk leaning label that has bred far more superstars than flops (Fall Out Boy, Panic! At The Disco<\/a>, fun., Paramore<\/a>, etc.). <\/span>Vessel,<\/span><\/i> the band\u2019s first release under FBR, had modest chart performance upon its release, mainly due to the success of lead single \u201cHolding On To You\u201d<\/a><\/em>. <\/span><\/p>\n

The hype surrounding <\/span>Vessel<\/span><\/i> led to a slew of major festival appearances, including Firefly, Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, and many others. Twenty One Pilots\u2019 highly memorable live show, complete with the band\u2019s now-trademark ski masks, Dun\u2019s <\/span>drum surfing<\/span><\/a>, and Joseph\u2019s <\/span>rafter climbing<\/span><\/a>, meant that no one in the crowd went home without remembering their set. <\/span><\/p>\n

    The band\u2019s biggest break came when they were announced as the opening act for Fall Out Boy\u2019s <\/span>Save Rock and Roll<\/span><\/i> comeback tour with Panic! At The Disco, which gave Twenty One Pilots access to entire arenas full of the mainstream listeners they had to win over. However, much of the band\u2019s success can also be attributed to their rabid fanbase, otherwise known as the \u201cSkeleton Clique\u201d. It only takes a quick search of \u201ctwenty one pilots\u201d on Tumblr and Twitter to get access to tons of posts, fanart, and typical fandom drama that all revolve around the duo. <\/span><\/p>\n

From the outside, much of the Clique\u2019s actions may seem obsessive and, at times, off putting, but it\u2019s a testament to Twenty One Pilots\u2019 music and message that even a moderate fan is willing to dedicate a decent amount of their time to following them (True Life: a friend and I once stood in line for four hours during a flood just so we could get a barricade spot at our first 21P show). <\/span><\/p>\n

\"Blurryface_by_Twenty_One_Pilots\"<\/p>\n

Album art courtesy of Fueled by Ramen and Reel Bear Media<\/em><\/p>\n

    Perhaps it is this calculated path to mainstream success that initially made <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i> seem slightly inferior in relation to the rest of the band\u2019s catalog. <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i> is, by no means, a bad album, but part of the album\u2019s purpose was to serve as a mainstream crossover. Unlike Twenty One Pilots\u2019 former work, the songs on <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i> had to be more radio-friendly; Joseph seems to take note of this himself on \u201cLane Boy\u201d<\/a><\/em>, rapping: <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHonest\/<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

There\u2019s a few songs on this record that feel common\/<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

I\u2019m in constant confrontation with what I want and what is popping in the industry\u201d. <\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

    Blurryface <\/span><\/i>was definitely Twenty One Pilots\u2019 most experimental effort to date, adding in elements of reggae, dubstep, indie pop, and hip hop in ways the band previously hadn\u2019t explored before. <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i> was also successful in producing some immediate gems and fan favorites (see \u201cHeavydirtysoul\u201d<\/em><\/a>, \u201cTear In My Heart\u201d<\/a>, \u201cRide\u201d<\/a>, \u201cGoner\u201d<\/a><\/em>), but unlike the band\u2019s other three albums, some songs such as \u201cPolarize\u201d<\/a><\/em> and \u201cHometown\u201d<\/a><\/em> can arguably be categorized as fillers in comparison to the rest of the album.<\/span><\/p>\n

There seems to be a schism amongst \u201colder\u201d Twenty One Pilots fans that <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i> simply doesn\u2019t hit as hard as <\/span>Vessel<\/span><\/i> did. I remember discussing <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i>\u2019<\/span>s<\/span><\/i> lead single \u201cFairly Local\u201d<\/a><\/em> with my aforementioned friend upon the song\u2019s release, who resigned to calling the song just \u201calright\u201d. Musically and, at some points, lyrically, <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i> pales a bit in comparison to it\u2019s predecessor. But the significance of <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i> does not rest solely in the songs. <\/span><\/p>\n

    What makes <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i> so weighty is the concept behind the album. The album\u2019s name stems from a character the band created during the album\u2019s recording. According to Joseph<\/a>, Blurryface \u201c<\/span>represents all the things that I as an individual, but also everyone around, are insecure about.” When listening to <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i>, common themes in Twenty One Pilots\u2019 lyrics such as struggles with anxiety (\u201cStressed Out\u201d, \u201cMessage Man\u201d<\/a><\/em>), depression (\u201cNot Today\u201d<\/a>, \u201cGoner\u201d<\/em>), and faith (\u201cDoubt\u201d<\/a>, \u201cThe Judge\u201d<\/a><\/em>) are all discussed, but this time the blame for all these struggles can be squarely placed on the idea of Blurryface. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Much of the earlier Twenty One Pilots catalog discusses struggles and fears in a somewhat hopeless fashion, since stresses and triggers are portrayed as coming at Joseph from many unknown sources. On <\/span>Blurryface<\/span><\/i>, all of Joseph\u2019s worries are caused by one entity: Blurryface. Though Joseph still has his struggles, he\u2019s much more hopeful that he will someday be able to rise above these problems…now that he is solely focused on overcoming Blurryface. Many Twenty One Pilots fans who have struggles similar to Joseph\u2019s find comfort in this concept. The concept of Blurryface gives them the strength to battle their own demons in the way that Joseph has. <\/span><\/p>\n