As millions of young people nationwide are starting their summer vacations, what better way to celebrate the advent of summer than to release new music that will be played from countless car radios, pool parties, and concerts? Music duo consisting of vocalist Tyler Joseph and drummer Josh Dun, Twenty One Pilots kicked off the summer season by releasing a fourth studio album titled Blurryface on May 17. Matching the creative ingenuity of Vessel, the band’s 2013 major debut album with record label Fueled by Ramen, Blurryface continues to experiment with various musical themes to create a compilation of fourteen tracks that brilliantly transcends the notion that albums must adhere to a single consistent sound and be in categorized into only one music genre.
Formed in 2009 in Columbus, Ohio, Twenty One Pilots was originally a three piece group consisting of Tyler Joseph, Nick Thomas, and Chris Salih. However in 2011, Thomas and Salih left due schedule conflicts. Subsequently after their departure, Josh Dun joined the band as a drummer. Prior to their signing at Fueled by Ramen, Twenty One Pilots self released two albums, one self titled and another called Regional at Best. With Fueled by Ramen, Twenty One Pilots released Vessel, a musical and commercial success that set a very high expectations for future albums.
Originally scheduled to be released on May 19, Blurryface was released two days ahead of time because Joseph and Dun were very eager to share the album with the fans. Despite the immense hype, fans already have heard several tracks of the album prior to Blurryface’s official release. Singles from the album were steadily released as the May release date approached. The first single, “Fairly Local”, dropped in April and provided fans with a real sneak peek of what was to come. Following “Fairly Local”, additional singles such as “Tear in My Heart”, “Stressed Out”, “Lane Boy”, and “Ride” were premiered. Despite that theses five singles consisted of a significant chunk of the album, fans were still in the dark about the remaining nine tracks.
Similar to Vessel, Blurryface’s mix of several different music styles creates an entirely new genre that could only be described as pop and alternatives’ lovechild. Twenty One Pilots and fans alike describe the band’s trademark sound as “schizo pop,” a mix of different genres that sounds “all over the place”–in a good way. Songs that accurately reflect this unique approach to music are “Ride”, “Polarize”, and “Lane Boy” for their experiments with reggae, “We Don’t Believe What’s on TV” for its ukelele undertones, and many others for Joseph’s familiar frantic rapping. Although Blurryface is simply a motley of completely disparate styles that seemingly would not sound well together, Twenty One Pilots interweaves these themes in such a way that uniquely and brilliantly works.
In addition to the album’s standout instrumental variety, the lyrics of these songs unveil vocalist and lyricist Tyler Joseph’s vulnerabilities. The title of the album “Blurryface” represents Joseph’s insecure persona. In song “Stressed Out”, Joseph reveals that “Blurryface” is a part of himself: “ My name’s Blurryface and I care what you think.” Throughout the album, Joseph battles with this side of him until the last song of the album “Goner” when he acknowledges “[he’s] got two faces, Blurry’s the one [he’s] not.” Coupled with creative and well put together instrumentals, Blurryface’s story-like narrative creates a whole new dimension to the already dynamic album. Moreover, these lyrics produces a record that fans can connect with.
Faced with immense pressure to match and even surpass the triumphs of Vessel, Twenty One Pilots delivers an album that continues to defy normal genre restrictions. As the band is becoming more popular, Twenty One Pilots continues to transform the music industry.
