To be honest, I'd struggle to think of anyone less qualified to cover this album than me. After all, unlike everyone else who appeared to fall head over heals for the third album of duo twenty one pilots, I was only mostly positive on it. Don't get me wrong, the instrumentation was wild and diverse, Tyler Joseph certainly had the voice to sell a lot of the heavier moments, but the most frustrating thing about that album was that for however many claims that Joseph wants to make that his songs will never be on the radio, the best songs on 'Blurryface' were the shimmering, radio ready pop songs. I will obviously acknowledge that I'm in the significant minority when I say that, but I was looking forward to this album, I wanted to know what I was missing in not getting on board with this group when they initially broke through.
But, I was still concerned. Lead single 'Jumpsuit' did not seem to have any huge charting impact, but the underwritten, mysterious nature of that song meant that, while I did find the song interesting, I haven't been coming back to it all that much, on account of being more intrigued to see how the song fits into the wider context of the album. So, with all that being said, was 'Trench' the album that got me on board with this band?
You know what, I think 'Trench' might be the album that has finally allowed me to understand what all the hype about twenty one pilots is about. 'Trench', undoubtedly their best album, is a thematically dense, instrumentally thrilling affair that might juggle its way between musical styles, ends up being one of the duo's most cohesive albums to date, both instrumentally and lyrically.
Although, it might seem initially that not a lot has changed musically. The drums are as as sharp as ever on 'Chlorine' and 'Pet Cheetah', but there is also a continued reliance on more swampy synthetic elements and dark pianos that swarm across these songs and give them a lot of intense, dark swell. It is also worth noting that the genre hopping on this album is a lot more subtle than it was on 'Blurryface' for example, and there are no clear pop crossover tracks on this album like 'Stressed Out' or 'Tear In My Heart' on that last album. But, that being said, the instrumentals are still some of the best the group has ever had. The huge groove that runs throughout 'Jumpsuit', the subtle touches of the piano that really help 'Neon Gravestones' and 'Bandito' both land with such a punch, to the ukulele touches on 'Legends' and the infectious instrumental on 'The Hype' that makes me wish that Joseph did not sound as nasal on that song.
But, generally, Joseph sounds as good as he's ever been on a twenty one pilots album. His rapping on 'Levitate' is still excellent (but his flow on 'Pet Cheetah' does sound oddly stilted and awkward), but when he's required to be more subtle in his delivery on 'Neon Gravestones' and 'Leave The City', especially on that latter track, he proves he's more than a match for the thick, swampy mixes.
Despite all this, the album does occasionally tilt into tones that I personally don't like. The pitch shifting drizzled over the hook on 'Nico And The Niners' felt inessential at best, and some of the tones on 'Cut My Lip' and 'Pet Cheetah' can get really grading in a hurry. And occasionally some songs can just aren't as melodic or memorable as the rest. The flute fragments that are buried in the mix on the 'Smithereens', and how the main melody never really breaks through or resonates with me on 'Bandito' until the dying third, these are examples of this.
And this leads me onto what I believe will be a big talking point when it comes to this album: the melodic composition. I might not be the biggest fan in the world of 'Blurryface', but that album was distinctly melodic and catchy at more points than it wasn't. Those catchy moments are a lot harder to find on this album. The only moments where a heavy groove comes through is on 'Jumpsuit' and maybe 'Pet Cheetah' if I'm being generous. Instead, this album is much more reliant on the rich build-up of piano and strings, synth fragments, perhaps most evident on the closing track 'Leave The City', and, on the harsher tracks like 'Chlorine', 'Levitate' and 'Pet Cheetah', quick percussion and walls of electronic effects with only bursts of deeper melody on the hooks.
Believe it or not, I think this really works. 'My Blood' is probably the best example. The restrained groove partnered with richer synths and Joseph reaching into his falsetto for a killer hook before dropping into a rap flow and making it look totally effortless on the second verse. Undoubtedly the band at there best on this album.
But now we need to talk about the reason the album has attracted so much attention, the lyrics and themes, and the reason why I think the looser melodic approach really works in terms of communicating the message the band are trying to put across. However, I will attempt to be fairly brief in my discussion of the themes as I'm planning a much longer piece where I discuss the narrative in detail. To put it in as brief a way as I can put it, this is a story about mental illness, and the challenges that comes with trying to escape from it, mental illness itself being represented by Nico (who is directly referenced on 'Morph' and Nico And The Niners') and eight other bishops. The band teased a lot of letters signed by Clancy on a mysterious website about their experiences in the dystopian city of Dema. Furthermore, the Banditos are established as a rebellion against the bishops, likely who Joseph is directly talking to on 'My Blood' ('I'll go with you'), but, despite his efforts, on 'Leave The City' though the eerie line 'they know that it's almost over', that he never did escape Dema, but he's okay with it, content with simply being alive.
While 'Trench' does does have a few problems, I'm still going to give it a light 4 / 5. If this can be an album that brings a new way of listening to music (more as an interactive experience) to the masses, that's only a good thing.
Rating: 4 / 5
Best Songs: 'My Blood', 'Leave The City', 'Neon Gravestones', 'Legend'
Worst Songs: 'Cut My Lip'
You know what, I think 'Trench' might be the album that has finally allowed me to understand what all the hype about twenty one pilots is about. 'Trench', undoubtedly their best album, is a thematically dense, instrumentally thrilling affair that might juggle its way between musical styles, ends up being one of the duo's most cohesive albums to date, both instrumentally and lyrically.
Although, it might seem initially that not a lot has changed musically. The drums are as as sharp as ever on 'Chlorine' and 'Pet Cheetah', but there is also a continued reliance on more swampy synthetic elements and dark pianos that swarm across these songs and give them a lot of intense, dark swell. It is also worth noting that the genre hopping on this album is a lot more subtle than it was on 'Blurryface' for example, and there are no clear pop crossover tracks on this album like 'Stressed Out' or 'Tear In My Heart' on that last album. But, that being said, the instrumentals are still some of the best the group has ever had. The huge groove that runs throughout 'Jumpsuit', the subtle touches of the piano that really help 'Neon Gravestones' and 'Bandito' both land with such a punch, to the ukulele touches on 'Legends' and the infectious instrumental on 'The Hype' that makes me wish that Joseph did not sound as nasal on that song.
But, generally, Joseph sounds as good as he's ever been on a twenty one pilots album. His rapping on 'Levitate' is still excellent (but his flow on 'Pet Cheetah' does sound oddly stilted and awkward), but when he's required to be more subtle in his delivery on 'Neon Gravestones' and 'Leave The City', especially on that latter track, he proves he's more than a match for the thick, swampy mixes.
Despite all this, the album does occasionally tilt into tones that I personally don't like. The pitch shifting drizzled over the hook on 'Nico And The Niners' felt inessential at best, and some of the tones on 'Cut My Lip' and 'Pet Cheetah' can get really grading in a hurry. And occasionally some songs can just aren't as melodic or memorable as the rest. The flute fragments that are buried in the mix on the 'Smithereens', and how the main melody never really breaks through or resonates with me on 'Bandito' until the dying third, these are examples of this.
And this leads me onto what I believe will be a big talking point when it comes to this album: the melodic composition. I might not be the biggest fan in the world of 'Blurryface', but that album was distinctly melodic and catchy at more points than it wasn't. Those catchy moments are a lot harder to find on this album. The only moments where a heavy groove comes through is on 'Jumpsuit' and maybe 'Pet Cheetah' if I'm being generous. Instead, this album is much more reliant on the rich build-up of piano and strings, synth fragments, perhaps most evident on the closing track 'Leave The City', and, on the harsher tracks like 'Chlorine', 'Levitate' and 'Pet Cheetah', quick percussion and walls of electronic effects with only bursts of deeper melody on the hooks.
Believe it or not, I think this really works. 'My Blood' is probably the best example. The restrained groove partnered with richer synths and Joseph reaching into his falsetto for a killer hook before dropping into a rap flow and making it look totally effortless on the second verse. Undoubtedly the band at there best on this album.
But now we need to talk about the reason the album has attracted so much attention, the lyrics and themes, and the reason why I think the looser melodic approach really works in terms of communicating the message the band are trying to put across. However, I will attempt to be fairly brief in my discussion of the themes as I'm planning a much longer piece where I discuss the narrative in detail. To put it in as brief a way as I can put it, this is a story about mental illness, and the challenges that comes with trying to escape from it, mental illness itself being represented by Nico (who is directly referenced on 'Morph' and Nico And The Niners') and eight other bishops. The band teased a lot of letters signed by Clancy on a mysterious website about their experiences in the dystopian city of Dema. Furthermore, the Banditos are established as a rebellion against the bishops, likely who Joseph is directly talking to on 'My Blood' ('I'll go with you'), but, despite his efforts, on 'Leave The City' though the eerie line 'they know that it's almost over', that he never did escape Dema, but he's okay with it, content with simply being alive.
While 'Trench' does does have a few problems, I'm still going to give it a light 4 / 5. If this can be an album that brings a new way of listening to music (more as an interactive experience) to the masses, that's only a good thing.
Rating: 4 / 5
Best Songs: 'My Blood', 'Leave The City', 'Neon Gravestones', 'Legend'
Worst Songs: 'Cut My Lip'
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