I have been a fan of Twenty One Pilots since I was 8 years old. My mom would frequently play the album “Vessel” in the car while my dad was deployed, and I grew a very deep love for the song Car Radio. When the album “Blurryface” was released, I remember her buying the CD and playing it in our minivan repeatedly for months. I fell in love with the band and the fandom and made so many friends through our mutual love for music.
The album “Breach,” released on September 12, marks the end of the band’s storyline that was a decade in the making. It’s a bittersweet feeling, but with Tyler Joseph having three kids and Josh Dun with one on the way, they more than deserve the break they plan on taking. They will be playing at the Coca-Cola Amphitheater in Birmingham on October 17, and there are limited tickets left, so be sure to get one if you’re a fan!
The album opens with the song “City Walls”. While this is the opener to the album, this song marks the conclusion of the storyline. There is a heavy and gritty bassline, with interesting pitch bending in the background. The rap verses combined with the vocal-heavy chorus is a great blend and is reminiscent of some of their past work. The rap verses remind me of the song “Levitate” off of their album “Trench.” The track also features callbacks to old songs, such as with the lines “Island of Violence”, from their song “Migraine,” and “Entertain My Faith”, from their song “Holding On To You.” Many fans, me included, got very emotional with these callbacks. It truly shows how far they’ve come as a band and as individuals. My favorite part has to be the bridge, with the soft drums, piano, and ambient noise in the background. As this bleeds into the last chorus, it sends goosebumps across your body. I truly think this may be one of the best album openers I’ve heard in a long time.
The second track is titled “RAWFEAR.” It’s a much more vibey and upbeat song, but typical of Twenty One Pilots, the lyrics are much different. The song begins with a sample of Tyler’s children screaming, which reappears throughout the song. It’s a unique touch to the ambience of the song. The bridge having a tempo change was outstanding, bringing this song from one of my least favorites to one of my favorites. The tempo slows back down at the end, but this change is more than welcome on this track. Many people with anxiety or existential dread will likely relate to this song’s topic of time passing rapidly, combined with the catchy beat and hook.
The third track, “Drum Show,” was one of the singles for this album. This track is easily one of my favorites, as it’s the only song throughout their discography where the drummer, Josh Dun, sings. The song was written for Josh, detailing little nuances about the man’s character with the lyric “He drives slow when the song’s not over.” The gentle vocals of Josh in the bridge followed by Tyler’s scream into the final chorus was a beautiful contrast and made the track one to remember on the album.
“Garbage,“ the fourth track, is great lyrically but has to be my least favorite track on the album. I think the beat is very catchy and the lyrics are well written, detailing the feeling of depression and the way someone may deny help, but the delivery in the chorus makes it fall flat for me. I think if it had a slightly heavier chorus beat-wise it would’ve improved it a lot for me. Specifically, the way the word ‘garbage’ is said feels a little out of place and throws me off every time I listen to it.
The Contract was the first single dropped from this album. It has a much darker sound, setting the tone for the end of the lore and the album itself. It has a lot of synths and combined with Tyler’s gritty vocals it truly packs a punch. The piano being a constant throughout the song creates a cinematic feel, making it feel like a grand opening to the ending of this storyline. I listened to this single over the summer along with the music video, and combined with the trippy and dystopian visuals, it really sets this single apart from any other single Twenty One Pilots has dropped in the past.
If you are a fan of older Twenty One Pilots albums, you’ll love the track Downstairs. The song has the same vibe as the self-titled and “Vessel” albums, and it was confirmed to be a near decade old demo that had been living on Josh Dun’s laptop. Even Tyler’s vocals are reminiscent of their old vocal style and combined with the heavy use of synth and piano, it feels like you’re being transported back in time to listen to Twenty One Pilots when they were first making a name for themselves. The key change threw me off slightly at first, but now I think it’s a staple of the vibe of this song. It’s easily in my top 3.
Robot Voices is the seventh track on the album, with the chorus sampled from the song My Soft Spots My Robots by Blanket Approval. Tyler reached out to the band for permission to interpolate their song within Robot Voices, to which they approved. I think this song is very unique, with the robotic and autotuned vocals underneath the main vocals. The song itself is a love song, which Tyler always writes at least one of per album for his wife, Jenna. While this track is very solid, it is not up there with one of my favorites. It holds its own among the other songs, but nothing about the song fully stuck out to me.
In my opinion, Center Mass is an outstanding track. The beginning starts with samples of viral moments from their previous Clancy tour, such as when a fan sang a harmony to their song Trees, as well as when someone stole Josh’s drum while a girl filmed. It also starts with a sample of Tyler’s own voice, cut up to match the beat. The lyrics of the song detail a person seemingly having a panic attack or a bad moment, explaining the way they “Pull their shirtsleeves to cover up their hands/face’ and ‘pull their arms closer to their body to get as small as they can.” I think this song is both lyrically and sonically outstanding and stands out on this album.
Being completely honest, Cottonwood made me cry. This song was written about Tyler’s late grandfather, a song about grief and longing. He compares his grandfather to a cottonwood tree, his favorite tree, describing his death in the poetic way of a tree falling in the woods. The song is almost entirely drum, piano, and bass along with vocals, giving an almost acoustic vibe to match the melancholic lyrics. The line ‘I look back in time through a telescope, I’ve been catching my reflection already looking’, is one that really resonated with me as someone who frequently thinks about my future and my past. This is my favorite off this album.
“One Way,” the 10th track, is groovy with the heavy bass notes and drums. It’s a bit more laid back and fits well with the rest of the album, but not much about this track stands out to me. I enjoy the lyricism of a delayed or one-way flight, but sonically, this song doesn’t do much for me. The only part I truly enjoy is the transition between One Way and the next track, Days Lie Dormant, where Tyler samples a voicemail from Josh deciding the order of tracks and thinking that it’s a bit of a vibe change.
“Days Lie Dormant” starts with the end of the audio sample at the end of “One Way.” This track is significantly more upbeat, with an almost happy pop feel. This song is the song Tyler dedicates to his wife, a cute love song to say that he doesn’t want to waste his time in a place where his wife isn’t with him. This song can be interpreted as a love letter to his wife, Jenna, while he’s touring. It’s a very sweet track, but again, this track doesn’t do much for me.
“Tally” is a masterpiece. The song feels very sonically full of different synths and a fast drumbeat. The heavy hits with the deep bass and drums sound outstanding with headphones or a good speaker. The vocals are incredible on top of this, making one solid track altogether. Lyrically, this song is also incredibly well written and relatable. It tells the story of someone who is afraid of love, and when they love, they’re afraid that the person is keeping track of all their mistakes and misdoings. In the end, the person still loves them no matter their flaws or mistakes. It’s a beautiful song that many, including myself, can relate to and find comfort in.
The album closes with the thirteenth track, “Intentions.” This song is very special to longtime or old fans, and the entire beat and melody of the vocals is their song “Truce,” from their album “Vessel,” in reverse. “Truce” is a comfort song to many fans, especially with the message of staying alive through your hardships. “Intentions” gives a similar message, saying that even though you may fail over and over again, your intentions are what matters. The short piano track is a gorgeous ending to this album and to this era of Twenty One Pilots.
