Twenty One Pilots concert review
By Sonam Kaloti, Arts Editor
Twenty One Pilots is a band composed of only two people—Tyler Joseph and Joshua Dun. Hailing from Columbus, Ohio, the band has made a huge name for itself by topping charts with hit singles such as “Stressed Out.” Their Vancouver concert on May 12, held at Rogers Arena, was part of the Bandito Tour, spanning many countries to promote newest album Trench.
I’ve been to a lot of concerts—in fact, it’s my favourite place to be. However, I may never have gotten so into concerts in the first place had it not been for Twenty One Pilots. My first concert was in 2014 at the Rio Theatre in Vancouver. Funny, considering that the Rio is a well-known movie theatre with a tiny 420-person capacity, and that only five years later the ski-masked musicians would be playing in one of the biggest venues around.
It was the band’s first time playing their entire new album in one setlist. The set was composed of 23 songs yet didn’t run late. I was impressed that their show started exactly when stated and ended before 11 pm. At this point there’s nothing more rock than going hard right before getting a proper good night’s sleep.
They pulled gimmicks throughout the entire show, from their 2014 vocal host Nigel presenting the band, to walking over the entire pit on a suspended metal walkway. At one point a masked figure appeared onstage who we presumed to be Joseph, yet a light shone to the balcony and to everyone’s shock, the real him was standing there.
Their energy was high as usual and both Joseph and Dun’s stage presence was phenomenal. As a duo they must do all they can to capture the audience, a feat they continue to achieve.
Though the entire show was amazing, there were a few moments that stood out in the show. One was the performance of “Legend,” an emotional ballad about the passing of Joseph’s late grandfather. Having suffered a similar tragedy this year, this performance’s raw lyrics and acoustic sound struck a chord with me.
Another magical moment was the song “Truce” played on tape. The instrumentals played while the band disappeared. During this, the audience sang “Stay alive, stay alive for me” together and the chorus of thousands of voices pleading to each other sounded so beautiful.
Lastly, their ending performance of “Trees” was powerful as always. Both Dun and Joseph had drumming platforms set up in the crowd where they gave the last hurrah of the show. The energetic performance left a bittersweet feeling—sad that the show was over, but joyous of the experience and ready to live.
