Twenty One Pilots Leave Fans in Awe
October 25, 2018
This is my second time attending a Twenty One Pilots concert–and let me tell you, it was probably the most awe-inducing experience I’ve ever had in my life. I thought the last concert was fantastic, which it was, but this one was even better. Josh Dun and Tyler Joseph both really stepped up their game when it came to the visual effects, including the crowd (and not just the ones in the pit) and their overall stage personas.
Last year, I attended the very last concert of the Blurryface tour in Louisville. I went with two friends of mine, Haylea and Destiny. Not long after that concert, the boys went on a year-long hiatus. Throughout that time, Joseph had been dropping hints off of the new album: Clancy, DEMA, and the Tower of Silence, which caused the clique (the fanbase) to go crazy.
Towards the end of summer, Joseph and Dun emerged from the shadows with three new songs and a bunch of tour dates that gave the opportunity for true fans to get the tickets before the “scammers” did. Called Verified Fan from Ticket Master, you had to sign up for a specific tour date and if you got picked, you were one of the first ones to buy tickets.
When I heard that I had been picked for the concert, I freaked. I used the code they gave me, bought two tickets for $150. Then, I immediately texted Haylea and asked her to come with me.
She said yes, and that was it.
Our concert date was October 16, months away, but we were both so so excited.
Time passed, and it was finally time for the concert.
Haylea came home with me, we ate food, and then we were on our way to Nashville. When we got there, the place was packed. The line for the GA was incredibly long and everyone was storming the merch shops.
We made our way inside and up to our seats, which was on the third level of Bridgestone Arena. They weren’t good seats, but we had a nice view of the stage.
We bought hoodies from the merch shop set up on the third level–mine costing around $65 and hers $75. We bought a water bottle–$5, and then we sat down in our seats.
The first opening act was Max Frost, a musician who seemed to do much of the music himself. He wasn’t my favorite, but he was definitely impressive. Next was AWOLNATION, who started their bit off with their hit song Run and at some point played their other hit song, Sail. The crowd was pumped, knowing that soon Twenty One Pilots would be on.
The first song that played was “Jumpsuit,” off their new album. Dun, dressed in gear from the “Jumpsuit” music video, walked onto stage with a torch in hand. He moved from one side of the stage to the other, looking into the crowd. Then, suddenly, in the middle part of the stage, a fire was lit and you could see Joseph sitting atop the flaming Heavydirtysoul car. He was crouched real low. He stood, jumped off the car, and the song started.
Halfway through the song, petals started falling from the top of the stadium. Joseph started screaming the last of the lyrics. The crowd went wild.
The next song was “Levitate,” then “Fairly Local.” “Fairly Local” was crazy, if I’m being blunt about it. Joseph has had a history of using a disappearing act — he’d have someone on stage running around with the band’s signature ski mask on, singing, dancing, jumping off of the piano and the props on stage, while Joseph made his way up to the nosebleeds of the stadium. The person on stage would suddenly disappear, the song would quiet, and then Joseph would appear somewhere high up in the stadium.
No one knew what was coming. One second, Joseph was on stage and then the next, his double was falling backwards into a hole in the ground and then Joseph pops up high in the crowd. He finished the song while Dun drummed away on stage.
They continued with their classic song, “Stressed Out,” which was followed by “Heathens,” “We Don’t Believe What’s On TV,” “The Judge” and “Lane Boy.” During “Lane Boy,” men with gas-masks came out on stage with smoke machines in hand. They blew smoke over the crowd while Joseph yelled into to the crowd, “Get low!” The crowd all got low to the ground, and at the sound of his cue, they all started jumping.
It was a crazy sight to see from my spot in the nosebleeds. It was amazing, I knew that next time I saw them I had to get tickets in the pit.
Easily, one of the best parts of the show was when the boys went to the B-stage. A literal walkway descended from the top of the stadium, which Joseph proceeded to walk over to the B-stage. It was directly over the crowd; everyone was in awe.
When they began playing songs on the B-stage, a curtain descended over them. There were lights twinkling above them, and as they sang songs such as “Taxi Cab,” “Neon Gravestones,” and “Bandito,” holographic images were projected onto the curtain. It was probably one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. I’m pretty sure I cried. Haylea did too.
Eventually though, the concert had to end. They ended with the song they always end their concerts with–“Trees.” They stood on top of the crowd, each with a drum in front of them, and both began in their traditional ‘drum battle’ as yellow confetti rained down from above.
The amazing visuals, the B-stage, all the stunts they pulled throughout the concert made this concert one of the best I have ever been to. They upped their game from the last time I saw them, involved the entire crowd in their antics (even the people up real high), and made many people happy that night. I can’t wait to see what they’re going to do next.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuSk5mqW9mI
