Clancy

TWENTY ONE PILOTS | CHAPTER SEVEN

The boys cap off their decade-long journey with a 47 minute party mix of previous favorite flavors, as well as new ideas and palettes.

Before we get into this record at all, I must say I was anticipating this one heavy and knew it could really go either way. Either I find it to be a catchy, replayable, forward-thinking and ambitious continuation of my favorite branches of their sound, or well…I really don’t know how the latter would’ve panned out but as you can tell the former is true. Overcompensate’s bombastic, grimey and pristine nature as well as a production stamp all across the record from Paul Meany may lead most to see this as Trench: Part Deux (if the very bold and unsubtle “WELCOME BACK TO TRENCH” tag doesn’t already), but this is actually a different beast and an ultimately more interesting one.

Many times here I’m reminded of records they’ve previously made, whether it be Oldies Station’s quaint electronics, soft ukulele riff and punchy but subdued drums reminding me of Vessel or At The Risk Of Feeling Dumb feeling like a modernized Blurryface b-side there’s a hint of familiarity in destinations already set foot in. However, more often than not, I’m in shock at the array and variety of different sounds on here. Like I said in the beginning it’s like one of those family-sized mixed chip bags, but instead if you blended all of the chips in said bag. Fan favorite single Next Semester feels like uncharted territory with its punk-y verses, sparkly and uppity piano-led hook and acoustic outro. It takes the genre chameleonism they’re known for but removes the more thematic and stapled down (in a good way obviously) aspects of sister record Trench. Ultimately if that’s something you appreciate is up to you, but I quite enjoy how separate these songs are from eachother despite some familiar elements as it never drags out or gets boring.

Some of my favorite highlights are the anthemic chorus and almost-pop punk verses of Midwest Indigo, Vignette’s bombast and tight rapping from Tyler, the sincerity of The Craving, the goofy swagger of Lavish, the subtle and emotional buildup of Snap Back (which I’ll get back to in a little) and the very pretty and satisfying final acoustic portion of Paladin Strait. Lavish in particular was a big shock, as it may have been to many people in different ways, as it’s a psychedelic straight up pop-rap song with very tongue and cheek lyrics, disguising a fairly biting criticism of the radio. And sure, them talking about the radio in any facet is very ironic and somewhat annoying to hear about and the line about “keeping the mood androgynous” and “proctologists” is a baffling line to many, I find this perspective on it to be unique for them and I find that line to have a little more meaning than most will give it credit for. I see the line to about someone of a higher power (the proctologist; very funny to be talking about ass doctors in a pilots review, I know) taking advantage of someone, which Tyler seems to parallel with the way labels take advantage of and pray on up-and-coming acts, as the whole song is about the lifestyle pushed on you by the industry. I appreciate the message and I think it was laid out in an interesting way, personally, although I can see how it would be clunky to many others.

To snap back to Snap Back, I really can’t quite pinpoint what it is about it but it’s my favorite song on the album. I adore the crispy, psychedelic trip-hoppy sonics and I think Tyler’s minimalistic rapping and laid back singing over the subtly building instrumental makes for an emotional experience, especially after the cathartic and faux-experimental bridge (which reminds me a lot of Quadeca’s recent output shockingly). It’s just another one of those songs on here that feels like a full experience and takes me on an audio journey without doing too too much. All of these songs have at least one or two things to like about them, with even my least favorite songs on previous listens growing on me. I wish I could say it was perfect, however.

There’s certainly flaws to this album, and they could be very minor or major flaws depending on your view. Firstly, I think the production is near perfect but is spotty here and there. I love Midwest Indigo and Navigating clearly, but for whatever reason it seems like the production on these were rushed, with the compression and not every note sounding crystal clear like other tracks. Certainly a small complaint but a complaint nonetheless. A much bigger one being that the ending, or the last two songs in specific, not being anything to write home about. I love Paladin Strait as a song with its breezey progression, pleasant bird interlude (another funny sentence) and beautiful acoustic ending but it’s also the quote unquote end of this narrative. All we really get for this final chapter is an admittedly cheesey cliffhanger skit. Story antagonist Nico/Blurryface says a few lines to protagonist and titular character Clancy and boom. Credits. “So few, so proud, so emotional” after being greeted by Clancy isn’t exactly an award winning ending, and it being yet another cliffhanger doesn’t make it much better. I’d assume either things will get resolved in the upcoming grandiose Paladin Strait music video or the rumored deluxe/double album but after Leave The City curiosity-piquing open endedness and the disappointment of Scaled And Icy and the promise of finality in this era it’s just somewhat baffling and somewhat knocks some points off of the song and maybe even the record. Penultimate track At The Risk Of Feeling Dumb doesn’t have the benefit of being a great track however, as I find it to be a complete mess on Blurryface-painted stilts. It’s mildly annoying, but does actually have some things I like about it like it’s catchy hook or it’s surprisingly sincere and well-written lyrics.

At the end of the day, though, I’m very happy with how this turned out. Crispy production (98% of the time), some of their best lyrics, a fun sound that feels forward-thinking for them but also stays in touch with their roots and feels uniquely them. Josh’s drumming is always solid, Tyler’s vocals are sharp and his virtuosity on the many instruments he plays is apparent. All I need now is some more guitar on the next record. Yeah, can’t complain though. Really was scared of how they’d rebound but this one was a slam dunk.

I can-see that Clancy is dandy (man, tyler should call me to help write the next project cause those were some bars on the caliber of a 35 year old white Ohioan for sure).

Favorite Tracks: Overcompensate, Next Semester, Backslide, Midwest Indigo, Routines In The Night, Vignette, The Craving, Lavish, Navigating, SNAP BACK, Oldies Station, Paladin Strait

Okay Tracks: At The Risk Of Feeling Dumb

Least Favorite Tracks: None