14. Expectations for 2018

Justin and Noah list what they are most looking forward to in the new year of music.
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11. Alternative Music

From Jack White to Maynard James Keenan, Noah and Justin
discuss their favorite artists of the Alternative genre. 





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Twenty One Pilots Blurryface: An Album a Day

A̹͚̲̭̜̦̬̭̭͇͓͔̜̬̎̈́̌ͫ̐̔̑̈́͂ͪ̽̈́̋ͬ̅̆͑̚n̮̗̮̭̬̦͉̬̲͈̲̟̬̪̙̑̒ͪ̌ͅͅ ̫̤͙͔̳̲̇̔ͤ̈̌͒̀A̳̭̹̦͎͓͖̘̖̩̪̹̰̬̥͚̤͚̒̈́͂͊͗̈ͥ͋l̫̰͖̦̗̪͉͓͍̲̱͕̔ͥ͆ͫ̔͂ͤͅb̜̘̮̽̌̀̓ͬ̍̓̔͐ͨ̈̃ͭ̓ͨͯ̀u͇͓̳͔͔̱̖̻͍͇̮̘̳̥̼̻͉ͭ̆̈́̽̈́̐ͨͮ͂͌̐̂̊ͯ͒̌̈̂̓m̲͈̺͚͔͍̼͚̀̉ͥͤ̇̐͂͋̒͊͌ ̞͚̞̯͇̅̾̓̑̓̏͗ă̩̳̘͔̯̼͍͋ͭͧ̾̓̌ ͉̟͚̼̯͍͈̣͉̫̫ͪ͋ͤ̃͆̈͒̈́ͧ͆͋̌̈ͥͧͪ̎̀͂Ḍ͈̭̯̪̬̬͖͕͕̬̮̜̝̠̝͔͑̈̈́̄̒̓̉ͯ̽ͧa͕̫̟͕͇ͮ̉͆̃ͦ̑ͅy̝̘̻̦͙̺̫̋͐ͭ͂̈́ͨ̄ ̮͚͈̬̲̣̺̥̟̰̱͎͍͖̩̹͈͖͆̄̈ͅi̩͔̭͇͚̰͕̟̣͉̮͖̦͙͔ͩ̋ͥ́̃̓ͭ͆̉͂̿͗ͣ̃̿̓ͣs̖̬̟̬̪͔̞̱̪̬̙͍̘̦͍͌͆̎̒̎̉͌͌̿ͨ̎ͫ͒ͬ̈́̍ ͍͎̥̪̠̳̳̺͎̣̠̘̌̓ͦ͑̍ͪ̄ͣ̈ͪͨ̄͒ͭ̒͐͆́p̰̹̖̘̘̺̤̺̯̎ͬͩͭ̊̏͌͑o̗̣͍͚̼̣͚̥̙̼̩̦̔͒ͩͪ̀ͨͩͦ͒̓ͅͅs̞̦̯̞̥͙͓̮̳̈̍̃ͪ̔̔ͨ̍̾͆̄ͭ̌͌ͯt̹̬̭͙͉͍̙̜̗̬̮͍̒ͭ͆̉̑ͯͭ̓̂̊̽͆̓̇̇͋ͅḙ̦̯̳̳͚̅͆̃ͤ̽̈́̍͐ͮͬ̚ͅd͇͓̹͚̮̰͎̫̯͖ͬͪ̆̍̽ͫ̄̇ ̙̠̭̙̞̝͍̀ͨͩ̃ͭ͑ͫ͛̒̅̈́ͮ5̱̪͓̖̼̦͈̜̍̒̑͊̈ͫ͐̆̽̊ͫ͑͂ͩ̓̚̚ ͓̤̫̇̓̈ͅḏ͓̮̙̯̜ͥͭ̇̈́̓̑̓̋̎̾ͥ͆̉̈̊̔̈̊ͨă͉̹̯̳̺͙̘͖̟̩̥͍̜͇ͪ̿ͯ̃ͯ̑ͅy͎̟̬͇̗̯̥̗̫̮͎̣̟͍͈ͬ͗̽͆̑̀ͅs̜͇̳̬̼̲̥̱̖̞̺̅̒ͮ̑̄̂̍͂͑̄̇ͪ͊̎ ̫̪̰̰̟͙͇̤͎ͭ͒͆̓̿̍̌ͅa̖͕̟͇ͣͮ̾͋̔ͫ͛̄ͩ̈͂̌̇̌̈̆̔͊ ͖͙͕̰͙̞͎͈͕̞̳͓̘̱̞̦͇̰ͬ̆̾ͤ̃̃w͔͙͖̯͎̥͉͍̣ͮ̉̃̉̈̇͗ͅe̮̦̰̱̳̠͉͇͍̗̰͇ͭ͐̌͌̎ͫ͗̍͊̂ͤ̒̚ͅe̼̹̹͈͔͓̤̘̮̟̩̜̲̝ͫ̉͂̂̚k̹̫̤͕̤͉̳̖̭̣̮̖̝͎̻ͯ̌͒̈̅̈̈́ͅͅ,̪͔͙̫͊̽͒̃̇̆̈̿͐̄ͥ̄̂͂ͤ̚ ̝̩̼̯̦̉̀̈ͭͧ̑̈̌Ṃ̰͕͖̘͚̙̰̩̟͕̟̜̥͖̗̭̖̽ͨͮ̔͑ͬ̃̓̒̇̐ͧ͛̏͑̚ͅö̞̳̜͉͉̱̻́ͧ̉̌͊̎ͩ̂ͪ̾̂ͯͦ̒͆̐ͦn͔͙̙̯̩̘̪̠̳͙̭̙̬͈̜̰̗̅ͥͨ̅̓͑̄ͪͥ̚̚d̼̰̝̖̞̲̳̳͛͌̓ͭ͌ͬ͒ͭ̎̽ͯa̦̺͙͎͇͈̞̣͖͇̽̀ͬͅͅy͔̗̠͇͙͙͇̲͇̬̖̰͔͔͚̦̲͓̗͐͌̍̾̔͐̽͋ͧ̎ͦ̉ͬ̓͂ͯ͑ͨ̚-̝͚̗̻̲̱͓̜͎̺̜̯͙͛ͣ̈͒̃ͨͩͪ̆̏ͥ̐̅͆F͚̲̹̞̣͖͙͙̮̹͎̖͇̪̭̦̟̏ͣ̋ͧ̅̋̍ͩ̑̿ȑ̝̘̫̥̬̗̥̝͚̼ͮ́̒̂̏̆͌̋̓ͥͭ̾̅i͍̖̳͚̤̙ͬ̑̏͋ͥ̿͑̇͐͐̆ͤ̂d͍͓̼̗́́͛̉ͬ̏ͯ̈̈́͌̎̈́̓͆̿͋̂̚̚a͖̙̼̘̲͎͗̓̓̐̽ͬͪ̏ͣ͒͋̒̔͌͗̿͐ý̦̺̩̯͇̖̪͓̃ͯ̂͂͆ͅ

    Today we are continuing my quest to look at every twenty one pilots album by digging into their most recent studio album and smash hit Blurryface. This is the album that got me and many others into twenty one pilots for the first time. This album also is one of the craziest things to come out in a while as it is a bit of a concept album. The concept for this album does not follow a strict story but rather having tracks that all relate to similar themes and having the character of Blurryface.

    First off I’ve used the version of Blurryface that many fans have agreed is the proper way to listen to it. This version is identical to the studio version except that you include the original cut of Goner that was released years before Blurryface at the beginning. The reasoning for this is that this version of Goner has the tone of someone who is giving up, being very dark and having the sound of a noose tightening throughout. Then at the end of this track we have the synth stabs that most fans believe to be the sound of Blurryface (the character) screaming, this is the exact sound heard at the beginning of track one HeavyDirtySoul.

    From here the album plays out as a battle between Tyler and his demons, which are personified in the character of Blurryface. Blurryface has been described as an avatar for Tyler’s negative thoughts and emotions, being essentially all of the negative aspects of Tyler. The first time Blurryface was featured in a song was the single Fairly Local. This track has Tyler fighting with himself on the verses, arguing rather he is evil or if he can fight his nature. The pre-chorus has Blurryface taunting Tyler that this song will never be popular or played on the radio and that even if it went up for a vote his clique is too small for him to be heard.

    The introduction to Blurryface comes in the music video however, where the first time this taunt is spoken Tyler steps behind a wall and all that can be seen is his shadow. The second time however, Tyler is standing is a red lit room looking nervous before his head snaps forward to reveal red eyes as the deep pitch shifted voice of Blurryface taunts him. This is another case of Tyler mixing metaphors of mental demons with imagery of actual supernatural demons. This deep pitched shifted voice is used on other tracks as well, such as the hit Stressed Out.

    One of the weak points of this album is that the tracks after Fairly Local don’t really relate the character of Blurryface as well until Goner. While they are fantastic songs that deal with the issues of anxiety and doubt that Blurryface represents, they aren’t as direct with the character as earlier songs. Tear In My Heart is a really nice aside from the rest of the album as this is actually a love song written for Tyler Joseph’s wife Jenna. It’s the closest thing that twenty one pilots have done to a happy song and it’s a surprisingly good fit for them.

    The next track Lane Boy is one of my favorites and deals with the idea of record labels or critics telling them to stay in their lane. The entire song is pretty much them telling critics they will continue to experiment and do whatever style or genre that they wish and they should be happy they don’t go as far as they want to. Tyler even suggest the idea of having numerous time changes and tempo changes, which I’d honestly be all for if they wanted to go straight into prog territory.

    The song wraps up with a Drum’n’Bass buildup that fades into the next song The Judge. The Judge is the biggest Ukulele song on this album, featuring more lyrics of the spiritual crisis variety. The Bridge in this song displays Tyler’s uncertainty about his faith as well as relating back to the theme of a battle with Blurryface. While a lot of people see The Judge as being a metaphor for God it is also true that the listener can be The Judge of his bout with Blurryface. He is unsure if he is winning or losing because he is fighting himself.

    The next track Doubt, as well as Polarize and Hometown continue the spiritual lyrics mixed with battling Blurryface. Another standout is Message Man which is features some pretty rare boasting from Tyler about his skill as a lyricist and a rapper. The big finale of this album is the new rendition of Goner.

    While the original version finishes with Tyler seemingly defeated this version continues on with lyrics about how he’ll slip away into the music. This time around the fight continues with Tyler stating that Blurryface isn’t him and that he needs help to take him out. This lyrics seems to be Tyler asking praying for help much like HeavyDirtySoul. The song picks up into a powerful and frantic pace as Tyler screams out don’t let me be before ending with everything dropping out aside Tyler on the last line. This has been interpreted by many fans and been confirmed by Tyler as being the moment that Blurryface is defeated with many theorizing that the reason “you” is the line where everything fades away is because Tyler has received the divine intervention he was asking for.

    If you can’t tell by the long and in depth review this album has gotten from me, I absolutely love this album. While other albums have had dark elements and good songs this album works from beginning to end with a dark electronic vibe throughout that is balanced well by the acoustic elements and softer songs. This is an album that gives up something new on each listen and filled with so much imagery and storytelling that you may never discover everything Tyler and Josh have included on this record.

A̭̘͚̻̰̱̟͕̜̣̬̐ͬ̃̍̆ͭl̺̤͍͓̉̃̑̓͌̌͑̋̍̐̚b͎͉͚̖͙͍̣̲̜̤̭̲ͬ̈́̏ͮṳ͓̲͚̤̯̼̹̭̭ͩ̍ͯ̎̓̒̏̂͊̅ͫ̽̿ͮ̊͑ͭ̚m̦̺̭͇̱͈̖̩̲̜̟̘͖̟̖͖͛̇̈̾̄͑̏̑ͦͯ̃ͨ̉ ọ͙̫̞͉͕͕͖̺̖̠̰̳̜̥̩̓ͫ̽ͭ́̅̒̓̔ͦ̓̈n̩̜̩̱̺̯͙̟̠͑ͯ̅ͣͭ ̪͙̳͔ͮ̒̾ͯG̺͚̫̮̮̼͕̗̾͂ͭ̂̌̄ͦ͌͋͑ͥ͐o̞͇̱͙̰̰̘̱͓͖͓̦̝̞ͯ͌ͯ̅̓̃͛̈́̿̅̂ͨ͗̏ͬ͗ͮͪ̄õ̱̲̥͔̠̺͍̥͉̻̹͉̙ͯ̃̽̆̒͆̉̓͗̂ͪg͓̬̫̹̩̱̻͐̀̈́̂̆͂͛̿̾̍̽̂̓l̗͓̯̱̞̱̭͈̠̘̹̭̝̠͓͈͕̝̅ͪ̉̚ͅe̞͉̤̠̤͇͓̥̖̼̗͙̣̰ͧ͐͗̓̔ͫ́͊ͧ̈̊̓ͥ͂̋̓̓̚ͅͅͅͅ ̺̞͕̦͇̤̼͚͓̺̝̭ͬͩͧ̊͋ͧ́̐ͮ͌P͉̼̱̖̥̤̟̩̠̳̜̘͋̌̌̾ͤ̎l̤͚͙͖̩͚̲̊̉ͣ͌̆ͫ͂̊͑͋̽ͧa͖̻̻̫̝͗ͫ͛ͪͪ͑̈̍̍̀̽̚̚ŷ͉̜͕̼͉̳̣̤̞͓͔̻̃͗͂ͭ̓̚

A̜͙̞͉͚̜̱̤̠̰͙̮̠͚̫̮̲̦l̠͎̯͇̥̭ͅb̬̫͙̝͙͓̗͚̬̩̖ͅu̺̦̘̲̱̮̗̤̞̲͉ͅm̝̻͙͕̘ o̺͇̬̭͚̟̺͔ͅṉ̜̰̯̦̱͙̞̼̭ I͕͙̜̥̦͍͕̮ͅͅt͓̯̩̭̮͇̙̞̩u͎̼͔̗ͅn̗͖̫̗̰̻̖̖̮̹̖̯̯̱̘͇̭e̟̞͙̟̟ș͖̞̱̱̲͎

À̴̢͜l̴̡͏̡͟b̧̧̧͏ų̀͟͠͏m̨̕ ơ̛͜͜͝n̛͜ A̶̕͟m̡a̶̷͠ź̡͢͝͞o̴̧͢͡n̨̧̕͢

4. 2010s Music That Doesn't Suck Part 1

Part 1 of 2 where Justin and Noah discuss some of the music of the 2010s that doesn't suck. Today we examine the mainstream side of the 2010s for good music.

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Twenty One Pilots TOPxMM: An Album a Day

An Album a Day is posted 5 days a week, Monday-Friday

While Twenty One Pilots have not released a full album since 2015’s Blurryface, they did release an EP of reimaginings of their songs with MuteMath in late 2016. These renditions of some of their best tracks off of Blurryface are really incredible to hear. The way that Twenty One Pilots and MuteMath mesh on these tracks puts them in a whole new context, adding new elements and filling out the sound of some tracks.

Much like seeing Jack White with a full band after being in The White Stripes it's awesome to see just how much can be added to these songs that were originally from a two piece. It isn't quite so dramatic since Tyler Joseph often layers synths and instruments in the studio, but what is dramatic is hearing other artists bring their own individual styles to these tracks. From the funk disco groove added to Tear In My Heart to the dual drumming on HeavyDirtySoul, the added style from the members of MuteMath makes these tracks come alive in a whole new way.

The first track from this session is Twenty One Pilots’ hit song Heathens from the Suicide Squad soundtrack. The slower more somber pace of this version combined with cello, marimba and synth layers add a darker tone to the song. This version plays up the dark and introspective nature of the lyrics a bit more than the original version, which had some aggression on it.

The next track is the one which is the closest to the original, HeavyDirtySoul. This rendition pretty much just exchanges a few of the synth textures for real instruments and adds a heavy breakdown at the end. This version also features dual drumming in parts with Josh Dun and MuteMath drummer Darren King both playing the frantic drumbeat on this track. They did keep in the main background sample that many fans believe to be the character of Blurryface screaming, which I thought was a nice touch.

This version of ride is slightly different, with the piano rhythm being replaced by an echoey electric guitar and arpeggiated synths. A lot of the synth textures are changed to analog sounding synths straight out of the 80s. The overall feel of the song is a little different but it’s mostly just a bigger reverb filled version of the original.

Tear In My Heart is the biggest departure from the original as it features a funky disco vibe and completely changes the instrumentation. This version also uses Josh Dun’s trumpet playing in a few more spots than the original, such as in funk swing intro. This version also features Darren King playing bongos throughout the bridge, adding to the retro vibe that they’re clearly going for here.

The EP closes out with a version of Lane Boy that isn't much different from the original. The main differences here are the ukulele riff being played on keyboard as well a smattering of echoey guitar fills. Also the tempo is slightly different like with Heathens. The last drop is then replaced by an epic sounding jam session between MuteMath and Josh Dun that closes out the EP perfectly.

If you are a fan of Twenty One Pilots already I absolutely recommend this EP, however if you have never got into them I'd also recommend checking this out. These different takes on the songs might just be the flavor of Twenty One Pilots that’s for you. Either way, I'd urge you to watch the full session video the first time you listen because it really does enhance the experience.

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Twenty One Pilots Website

Twenty One Pilots: An Album A Day

An Album A Day is posted 5 days a week, Monday-Friday

It’s always interesting with a band or artist who get a large following around a song or album to go back and look at their earliest music. By doing this we can see how much their style has evolved from their earliest work to what they’ve become known for. In the case of Twenty One Pilots (stylized as twentyonepilots) their self titled studio debut is vastly different from anything off of their more well known albums ,Vessel and Blurryface.

Each of Twenty One Pilot’s three (ish) albums have each brought a different level of success and marked new phases in the band’s career. The band first gained a large indie and local following through the self release of two albums, Twenty One Pilots and Regional At Best. After selling out shows around their local Columbus, Ohio area they ultimately signed to Fueled By Ramen and put out Vessel, an album that included new songs as well as polished versions of Regional At Best tracks. The release of Vessel marked the band’s phase of having moderate national success.

The phase that Twenty One Pilots is currently in is the mainstream level appeal and stardom that their third album Blurryface has brought. While Vessel had a few hits, nothing can touch the overplay of Stressed Out from Blurryface. With three pop radio (Stressed Out, Ride and Heavydirtysoul) hits as well as the success of Heathens from the Suicide Squad soundtrack it’s safe to say that Twenty One Pilots have made it.

Going all the way back to their 2009 debut however, we find a very different band. Although the main lyrical themes of lead singer and songwriter Tyler Joseph are still there, namely mental illness, death, Christian themes and interesting wordplay, the style is much less engaging. With the exception of Isle of Flightless Birds, Fall Away and possibly Johnny Boy, all of the tracks on this album are slow piano ballads. Whereas the blending of pop, rap and rock elements on later albums make Tyler’s lyrics dynamic and full of impact, on this album a lot of them just come off as melodramatic and whiny.

           The more up tempo rap style can be found in parts of songs like Taxi Cab, but overall a lot of tracks become forgettable because of their slow pace and similar feel. I don’t just put the blame on Tyler being a less experienced songwriter however, I chalk it up to his bandmates as well.

While Twenty One Pilots is currently a duo consisting of Tyler and drummer Josh Dun, back in 2009 Twenty One Pilots were actually a three piece band.

Dun wasn’t even in the band yet, with it consisting of Nick Thomas on Bass and Chris Salih on Drums behind Tyler. My theory is that either Thomas and Salih didn’t let Tyler be as creative and weird as he would later be or simply that Dun facilitates Tyler’s pursuit of less conventional musical ideas. Either way, this album doesn’t stand out nearly as much as their other work because it simply feels too safe on a lot of tracks.

Overall it’s not a bad album, in fact some of my favorite tracks from this band such as Implicit Demand For Proof, Trapdoor and Taxi Cab are on this album. It’s just no where near as good as the more diverse and engaging content found on Vessel and Blurryface. While it's fun to look at this album and see some of the early threads of the band's current style, I would recommend just checking out the highlights and skipping the rest unless you're a die hard member of the Skeleton Clique.

Album On Google Play

Album On Amazon

Album On ITunes