The first thing that drew me to twenty one pilots was Tyler’s lyrics. On Vessel, I discovered Migraine addressed mental health, but hidden within the concept of a headache; Guns For Hands’ message was about suicide, delivered over the most happy-sounding beat possible; Holding On To You emphatically encouraged fans to fight self-doubt, with Tyler telling the listener to, ‘Take the pain / Ignite it / Tie a noose around your mind / Loose enough to breathe fine and tie it’.
Last year, once the band’s explosive, attention-grabbing album Blurryface was released, it became clear that this incredibly powerful insight into Tyler’s mind was only going one way: forward. Opener Heavydirtysoul hears the frontman rapping, ‘This is not rap / This is not hip-hop / Just another attempt to make the voices stop’, Ride admits, ‘I’ve been thinking too much / Help me’, and stunning album closer Goner ends with the words, ‘Though I’m weak / And beaten down / I’ll slip away / Into the sound…’.
All heavy words, but ones that have helped thousands of fans worldwide – myself included – tackle important issues and emotions going on in their head. twenty one pilots are arguably the first band since My Chemical Romance to have such a profound impact like that, and it’s undoubtedly one of the most crucial reasons listeners have latched onto them in the way that they have.