#just to really rock the worlds of the incredibly conservative fanbase

[muirneach]

i am aware that being a pro athlete would be my nightmare job and also i cannot really play tennis and also i am a little old to be starting out but the desire to be the first tboy in the atp is so so strong

[topweeklyupdate]

TØP Weekly Update #28: “What’s a Blurryface?” (3/5/17)

The US Roadshow wrapped up this week as the TØP Hiatus looms ever closer. Let’s celebrate all of the fun stuff from this week first before we get too bummed out about it. Catch you guys under the ‘Read More’.

This Week’s TØPics: 

Recapping Performances, Trees Speeches, and Some Amazing (and Amazingly Bad) Interviews

The American Roadshow Comes to an End (Kinda)

Two Community Spotlights: Listen to the Pop Song Professor Interview a Church Youth Group That Uses Blurryface to Help Kids Struggling with Depression, and Hear About AndySign’s day with Twenty One Pilots

Major News and Announcements:

Really nothing big in news, other than maybe them getting nominated for Best Group by Radio Disney. So... that’s cool, I guess. Sure ain’t no Kids Choice Awards. Next!

Interviews, Performances, and Other Shenanigans:

Whoof, another very busy week on the “not really news but still need-to-know” front. Let’s just go down the list city-by-city. Someone bloody proposed at Charleston during “Tear In My Heart”, and the video is so perfectly done that my shriveled heart believed in love. The Tampa show was attended by a lot of the boys’ family members (who Tyler humorously acknowledged before “WDBWOTV” in order to get some folks on the upper floors to stand up- I can’t imagine a Twenty One Pilots concert where anyone would need to be asked, I’m so shook). The band’s long-running relationship with the city was acknowledged in the Trees Speech. After the Tampa concert, the boys hung out around Florida with buddies, riding bikes with Mark at night, hitting up the beach, and, in Josh’s case, swinging by Orlando to hit up Disney World again. 

They continued their Southern vacation in New Orleans, taking the chance to walk around and absorb the music of the city (and also allegedly hitting up a Gamestop for the midnight release of the Nintendo Switch). The New Orleans show had some technical difficulties before the encore that led to an extended delay and the cutting of “Goner” from the setlist, but that just gave Tyler a chance to dish on One OK Rock apparently getting a massage before their encore at the show they opened for them. (Also, Jon Bellion got to hop in the ball.)

As for interviews... man, there was a great crop this week. Lots of in-depth, thoughtful, funny sit-downs with they guys. ...And, you know, the other one (sort of).

107.5 KZL, Greensboro

They discuss the general admission line and how people have been camping out for four days. Tyler acknowledges that they’re fans are tough and he would have tapped out after a few hours.

They can respect someone who prefers the Kidz Bop version of “Stressed Out”.

The interviewer talks about the age range of their fans and mentions someone outside who’s “70 years old, wearing an “I Am Twenty One Pilots” shirt and crocs”, and I just immediately laugh so hard crapping my pants because that could literally only be one person. Tyler and Josh both burst out laughing when they see the picture, because that’s their bud David the Dad and he’s definitely not 70 years old.

Hot 101.5, Tampa

The first of three really great interviews from Tampa, these hosts are simply very fun and accomodating. One of the interviewers is from Ohio and shares some chocolate buckeyes with the excited Columbus boys, and the two pairs laugh and joke through the whole thing.

Josh got rejected from one of the post-Grammy parties (actually, the party got shut down by the fire marshall and he eventually got in, but the story’s funnier the other way).

Tyler and Josh never got near anyone “really important” at the Grammys because they’re usually surrounded by bodyguards and they “don’t want to hurt them”.

Tyler misses his own shower and towel- he’s stepped in a lot of people’s hair, while Josh misses knowing where a microwave is at all times. They still recognize that they have it pretty darn good, because they’re at least not sleeping in a van (and also living the dream).

The only things Tyler and Josh really disagree on are the little things like where to eat. Tyler says that and their quality legs are the main reasons for their success.

93.3 FLZ, Tampa

Scotty Davis is one cool dude. He is so passionate about the band, so dang supportive. He possibly(/plausibly) talked a little too much, but he clearly respects them very much, not just in a fanboy manner, but as a huge fan of music, particularly live music.

His first question conveys his passion for their craft: he asks about how they stay in shape to maintain their athleticism and consistency of sound. Tyler responds with a very detailed answer about how their growth as a band has correlated with a steady growth in the runtime of their shows, and how that has allowed them to figure out how to conserve their energy (and, in Tyler’s case, his voice) throughout the day so that they have enough to make it, down to needing to avoid drinking water to keep himself from burping and putting on a good poker face to cover up being out of breath.

When asked about the technicality of his drumming, Josh says that his goal is more to inspire people like his younger sister to be inspired to make their own craft more than just be technically proficient.

The next technical question goes to Tyler about songwriting. Tyler confesses that, while the intimacy of making music with someone is truly great, he hates having people be in the room when he’s working on something. He’s talked before about tailoring songwriting to the live show, but the bit about even getting the bpm to try to match the jumping in the pit is really cool.

Tyler still has the numbers of fans from Columbus from the early years when they were hustling to get people to shows and my heart is on the floor look at it I’m dead.

Mix 100.7, Tampa

This interview isn’t quite as passionate/in-depth as the other one from Tampa, but it’s still very, very good.

The interviewer opens with some standard basic Grammy stuff, but he starts to get real after that with some questions about what their goals as artists were, which is appreciated even if they answers are stuff we’ve heard before. 

The next question is very interesting: it regards their competitive spirit. I’m not certain just how much research/knowledge the interviewer brought to the table, but he seems to recognize from how Tyler and Josh hold themselves that they have a pretty unique drive to be the best that not all artists really have. Tyler even calls their competition the band’s “biggest kept secret”. Tyler calls the musician community a “we’re all in this together” lovefest. “And that’s fine. But I want to win. I want to destroy.” More than just winning, Tyler hates losing, and that has played a big role in pushing them as far as they’ve gone.

Continuing on the theme of competition, Tyler firmly blames it on his parents; he claims that they called him after winning the Grammys and asked what was up with them losing four of them. “We’re competing against his parents’ band,” Josh jokes.

Mix 100.7 is an iHeart affiliate, they were talking about awards, the iHeartRadio Music Awards are coming up this weekend... makes sense that they were asked about their eight noms for the ceremony, specifically which award they most want to receive. Tyler knows off the top of his head the answer, without even having to go through the noms- Best Fanbase.

Next question involves the question of genre, specifically which they most identify with. Tyler says that he doesn’t always feel like he belongs in the pop world, while the alternative (he makes a point not to call it rock) road of making your own music, connecting to fans, and emphasizing live shows is more them (though the exposure of pop is always nice).

Tyler says that their next goal is just to succeed with the next album. “Anyone can do it once.”

B97, New Orleans

Whoo boy.

So... this one had some controversy because the hosts tried to be... cute, I guess? The interviewers both asked demeaning and even hostile questions (”How old were you when your mother stopped singing you to sleep?”, “Let’s go back to talking about Arthur Miller, that’s exciting.”), ignored and shouted over responses, and lightly tossed around insults (”you’re sassy”, “you’ve got a mouth on you”, etc.); one interviewer even spent the whole thing lying down on a table. It was obviously supposed to be funny, and the boys might even have been in on it, but it just wasn’t funny at all. It took me nearly an hour to watch barely four minutes.

Regardless of whether they were in on it or not, Tyler and Josh’s solid “no” reactions were great. Tyler just refusing to answer a question about Blurryface while the interviewer was laying on the table was great, as was his his sarcastic rebuttals to their ‘humor’ (“You guys are killing it”, “You can just keep saying lyrics I wrote all day”). 

The best fire, however, was easily Josh’s response to the male interviewer asking if Tyler ever got on his nerves. Josh stared him dead in the eyes, with as little humor as I think I’ve ever seen from him. “Never.” I’m dead.

It was so bad the station took it down. Dayum.

Finally, there’s this nifty interview with Brad Heaton, the photographer who has so blessed us these last few years with countless concert shots. I really hope the guy comes back for the next tour- he delivers some incredible photos, and he’s generally just a rad dude. There’s also this one from New Orleans, which has pretty bad audio and is just the interviewer telling dad jokes.

Upcoming Shows:

Tonight marks the end of the American leg of the Emotional Roadshow. It’s been a heck of a ride with a great crew of people, but it’s not the end just yet; the band has just under three weeks of a break before they venture out for the final leg of the Roadshow in Australia/New Zealand (more on that next week). It's not even the last chance for Americans to see them, as they've still got at least three summer festivals across the country lined up. But then... well, again, let's tackle that subject when we get there, this update's gone on long enough. 

As a result of tonight's show, the band sadly will not be able to attend the iHeartRadio Music Awards in L.A., but I think it’s safe to say that we’ll be seeing at least one video message from them. They’ve already won a few Alternative awards, it just remains to be seen if they’ll take home the big ones. We’ll also just have to see if they attend the Kids Choice Awards on Saturday (please, Lord, I know we haven’t talked in quite some time, but make it so).

Show 33: KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Kentucky, 3/5

Capacity: 17,500

The final stop on the Roadshow is in the great state of Kentucky, the home of bourbon, Muhammad Ali, and great baseball bats. The boys have played the city twice before, but both of those shows were in 2014. It's always a good thing when cities that tend to get overlooked by bigger neighbors (in this case, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Nashville) get direct service. The KFC Yum! Center (which is definitely in the Top 3 Worst/Best Named Arenas on this tour leg) is used by the sports team of the University of Louisville, so the show should attract a sizable college crowd.

Community Spotlight:

Today’s community spotlight will be cast on the Pop Song Professor, a YouTube channel that, surprise surprise, analyzes the lyrics of pop songs. The guy loves Twenty One Pilots and has multiple videos about their tracks, but I regardless hesitated to put him in the Community Spotlight because his opinions could potentially be polarizing- the guy’s an outspoken Christian, and thus usually interprets the songs in the most God-centered way possible. However, I don’t think that should be a reason to ignore his channel: the guy presents substantial textual evidence to back up his interpretations, and I think we can all agree that it can be both fun and fulfilling to find new ways to think about our favorite songs. Furthermore, he’s really passionate about thinking critically about the music we consume for both the listener’s benefit and the proliferation of more thoughtful music in the future, which is definitely TØP as frick.

The thing that really pushed me to include the Professor on this week’s spotlight, however, was this podcast I discovered on his website in which he interviews some youth pastors who study pop music lyrics with their students to teach Biblical messages, including an entire series where they went through every song on Blurryface. While, again, that might alienate people who may have bad experience or personal opposition to organized religion, I really think that the interview is worth a listen and some serious consideration. I, for one, can’t think of anything that would make Tyler and Josh happier than knowing that there is an organization that supports kids dealing with depression, self-harm, drug addiction, and personal pain by directly using the rhetoric of acknowledging your own Blurryface to help them see how much they really matter. 

Finally, following up on a story we’ve followed for a couple of weeks, here’s Andy’s full testimony about meeting Twenty One Pilots, signing “Ode to Sleep” with them, giving the guys their sign names (apparently, Jenna took ASL classes in college and Tyler gets to brag about getting a name first), and having to host his own impromptu meet-and-greet now that he’s super Clique famous. He’s an amazing person, and I’m so glad the Clique has helped him get a bigger platform to make art.

That's all I got in me during finals season. Check back next week for one last interview round-up and a look at what might be to come, which will hopefully be enough to get us through a brief hiatus. Power to the local dreamer.

|-/

[monkeyandelf]

New Post has been published on Buzz News from Monkey & Elf |

New Post has been published on https://www.monkeyandelf.com/10-shows-that-shook-2017/

10 Shows That Shook 2017

While the harsh realities of Brexit, Trump, and five more years of Conservative rule continue to hit home, the unifying force of music at least provided some kind of escapist respite. Not least when it comes to watching live music, which despite worldwide austerity has not diminished one iota for an eager audience only too willing to immerse themselves at every given opportunity.

Its becoming increasingly important – essential even – for musicians to maintain a presence in the live market which accounts for the growing amount of shows many acts play every year. What that makes for is an exciting arena where barely a single evening passes by without an unmissable event of some sort happening in your town, your city, or somewhere nearby. The ever-increasing popularity of bands like Wolf Alice and Idles is largely down to their relentless activity as live bands having played well over 200 shows between them this year. Likewise, the resurgence of acts like Slowdive and LCD Soundsystem, culminating in two of 2017’s best-loved albums, was largely due to both reasserting themselves through the power of live performance prior to releasing new material.

For me, 2017 has continued where its predecessor left off. From January to December I’ve taken in nearly 400 shows and 28 festivals involving almost 2000 sets, and here, after much deliberation, are the 10 which stand out from the crowd.

—

Arcade Fire @ Baths Hall

Scunthorpe 07.06.17

One of the most eagerly anticipated comebacks of 2017 saw Arcade Fire return with a new album, and after hearing its lead single ‘Everything Now’ on the first day of June, their same-titled long player was a mouth-watering prospect indeed. That the rest of the album didn’t quite match its opening salvo wasn’t relevant at this point, seven weeks before the record’s arrival.

As a precursor to the album, the band announced a handful of low key dates including this one in the unlikely setting of Scunthorpe. Situated in rural Lincolnshire with a capacity set at just over a thousand, this would be as exclusive as it got to witnessing Win Butler and co’s musical circus in the flesh. What’s more, they didn’t disappoint with an hour and a half long set that focused more on the band’s back catalogue than the forthcoming new record they were promoting. With a stage set in the middle of the hall like a boxing ring which was accessible from all angles, Arcade Fire threw one of the summer’s most prestigious parties. Sadly 24 hours later we’d all wake up to a new Tory government led by a Mini-Me version of Margaret Thatcher, but for one glorious evening, all thoughts of austerity and despair were extinguished from our minds.

Bloody Knives @ Rough Trade

Nottingham 22.03.17

Some things really are worth waiting for, and in the case of post-punk noise specialists Bloody Knives their first visit to the UK was one that will be remembered for a very long time. Ever since putting out their first album Burn It All Down back in 2010, they’ve been one of the most sought-after outfits on the shoegaze and noise rock scenes.

Playing a free show above a record shop on a Tuesday evening in March might not bring out the best in many a lesser outfit, but this Texan three-piece played a brutally visceral set as if their lives depended on it. Speaking to Rough Trade’s sound engineer afterwards he said it was the most devastatingly loud set he’d ever worked on, while the band themselves seemed genuinely surprised so many had turned out to see them.

The good news is they’re back in the UK next autumn to terrorize ears and sound desks in equal measures. You have been warned!

Confidence Man @ The Deaf Institute

Manchester 05.12.17

It was around this time last year that a booking agent friend told me about a new band his agency would be working with in 2017. They’d only played a handful of shows back in their native Australia but had just signed to Heavenly Recordings over here on the back of their first single. That band was Confidence Man and the single was ‘Boyfriend (Repeat)’. It might have sounded out of kilter alongside whatever else was in vogue at the time but after a couple of listens, it was clear this would provide the following summer’s soundtrack.

Fast forward to May and three shows at Brighton’s Great Escape, and the buzz surrounding Confidence Man had already spread like wildfire. Another three shows at Glastonbury two months later saw their fanbase rapidly increase even more so it was little surprise their first headline tour of the UK during the first week of December would sell out in advance. With several musicians and the whole of the band’s record label in attendance, this show at Manchester’s Deaf Institute turned into the unofficial Heavenly Christmas Party.

As for the show itself, they’re pretty much the complete package. While all eyes are on the front pairing of Janet Planet and Sugar Bones, the veiled musicians behind them provide the perfect backbeat to a repertoire that’s jam-packed full of big, party-fuelled pop tunes. Get Down!

Six By Seven @ The Maze

Nottingham 04.03.17

If ever a case of right place wrong time could be applied to music it would have to be about Six By Seven. Arguably one of the most innovative guitar bands of the past two decades and understandably tipped for great things at the turn of the century, that bands like Coldplay and Elbow went onto filling stadiums while Six By Seven continued to play intimate venues in their native city of Nottingham might seem a travesty in itself.

But then if they’d have crossed over to the mainstream in the same way as the aforementioned, who’s to say it wouldn’t have resulted in major label marketing strategists interfering with the band’s ethos? Anyway, almost seventeen years after Six By Seven’s original line up last shared a stage, they put their differences to one side and got back together for what was undoubtedly one of 2017’s most sought-after tickets. Playing two sets here – one to commemorate the 17th birthday reissue of highly revered second album The Closer You Get and the other a band-selected “Best Of” encompassing the first four years of their existence – Chris Olley and co didn’t so much roll back the years but reignite a level of interest in a band who’ve been criminally ignored for so long.

A simply magical evening.

Eyre Llew @ The Glee Club

Nottingham 10.11.17

There’s nothing more satisfying than watching a band blossom out of humble beginnings into the gargantuan beast standing before us today. Take Eyre Llew for example, a three-piece borne out of years of playing in unsuccessful bands, spurred on by a combined love of ambient, post-rock, and classical music.

Despite having only played their first ever show just two years ago, they’ve steadily grown into one of the most dynamic live bands on the circuit. Yet at the turn of 2017, it seemed like all wasn’t well in the camp. Lacklustre shows at Sheffield’s Outlines and Derby’s 2Q festivals suggested they’d reached something of a crossroads resulting in a complete overhaul of their live set. That it paid dividends would be something of an understatement, and over the second half of 2017 they’ve astounded audiences all around the world with one of the most beautifully orchestrated shows around.

However, November’s album launch in their native city’s Glee Club that really brought it home just how far they’ve come in such a short space of time. Here’s to an even better 2018!

Idles @ The Adelphi

Hull 03.08.17

The undisputed band of 2017. It’s almost unthinkable that this time last year Idles were barely known outside the city of Bristol. Even after plugging away for the best of a decade, they’d become something of an anomaly in the local scene there. So it’s to their credit that they emerged in January with an album that captured the zeitgeist so impeccably. Brutalism lives up to its name in every conceivable way, inspired by social inequality and escapism in equal measures, it’s a record that will be looked back on in future years as a landmark of its times similar to the first Clash record or More Specials.

However, it’s the live show where most people experienced Idles for the first time and what incredible shows they were. Having first encountered them at Eurosonic in January and endeavouring to see them at pretty much every festival in between, they became something of a must-see attraction throughout the year. Every performance became an event with no two sets ever the same. Indeed picking a favourite Idles show for this year proved a nigh on impossible task, but August’s low key show at Hull’s Adelphi as part of the 53 Degrees North conference took some beating.

Supported by the excellent Life and False Advertising, it soon became apparent to everyone present this was one of those “I was there!” moments people talk about in years to come. The world is their oyster in 2018 and only a fool would bet against them owning that too. In the words of one of their songs, they may have always been poor, but we were certainly never bored.

Senseless Things @ Shepherd’s Bush Empire

London 25.03.17

Back in the early 1990s, guitar bands of a left field persuasion would regularly set up camp in the higher echelons of the UK singles chart. One of those bands whose name appeared several times were Senseless Things, a four-piece from the suburbs of London. Fuelled by a shared love of bands like Husker Du, Buzzcocks, and The Replacements, they attracted a rabid army of devotees who’d follow them up and down the land whenever on tour. Which was pretty much twelve months a year. Every year. They put out four albums during their decade-long existence, eventually calling it a day in 1995 as Britpop swallowed everything in sight that wasn’t bathed in nostalgia or a moth-eaten union jack.

So it was something of a surprise that they announced their return at the end of last year, particularly as all four individual members had gone on to achieve varying levels of success ever since. Fast forward to late March and it was almost like they’d never been away. A warm-up show at Hull Adelphi the weekend before lit the touch paper for what was to follow in the main event. And what an event it was. Playing a set encompassing the unsurpassable highlights of their back catalogue alongside the band’s first (and hopefully not last) new recording for over 20 years ‘Lost Honey’, Senseless Things owned Shepherd’s Bush for one glorious spring evening. The first of (too) many more to come? We sincerely hope so.

Slowdive @ The Arts Club

Liverpool 28.03.17

When Slowdive reformed in 2014 they made it clear from the outset there was unfinished business. Their reunion was anything but an exercise in nostalgia, and when their first album for 22 years arrived in March, it proved to be one of 2017’s most distinguished and ultimately forward-thinking records.

Prior to its release, the band scheduled a bunch of low key warm-up shows and their hour and a half long set at Liverpool’s tiny Arts Club venue was undoubtedly one of the finest of their career. Exhibiting sonic perfection from start to finish, their expertly selected mix of material from both back catalogue and forthcoming album was breathtaking in its execution while providing an insight into what was to follow. Which Slowdive delivered in every conceivable way.

Thee Oh Sees @ Rock City

Nottingham 16.05.17

The previous time I saw Thee Oh Sees frontman John Dwyer was confronting a bunch of security guards at a holiday camp in North Wales. Playing the penultimate All Tomorrow’s Parties event in Prestatyn, he’d (rightly) taken exception to the way fans were being manhandled, the tipping point being an assault on a female crowd surfer resulting in her being thrown out the venue and Dwyer threatening to stop the show until she was allowed back in and the security team started treating the audience with respect. The bouncers backed off, the fan allowed back in and the band resumed playing one of their most brutal sets to date.

I say “to date” because that was two years ago. Since then they’ve released three albums and acquired a second drummer, enhancing their sound to almost catatonic levels. At first the decision to play Nottingham’s 2000+ capacity Rock City may have been an ambitious one for a band who’ve become something of an underground word-of-mouth phenomenon. However, all tickets soon sold out in advance, and their blistering textbook exercise in psychedelic garage rock turned the dancefloor into arm flailing moshpit of blood and sweat, ultimately creating one of the most memorable evenings that venue has housed in a very long time.

Wolf Alice @ The Venue

Derby 16.08.17

2017 will be remembered for many things and one of those must surely be the unstoppable ascent of Wolf Alice. Already assured of the award for the most hard working band in rock thanks to a relentless tour schedule that doesn’t seem to have ceased since 2014, they came back with a flawless second album which delivered on every level, highlighting them as one of the most distinctive yet musically diverse bands on the planet right now.

This show at The Venue in Derby was the first of a week-long tour road testing material off their then-forthcoming second record, and from the moment ‘Don’t Delete The Kisses’ introduced them to an awestruck crowd it became obvious Visions Of A Life was certain to be one of this year’s finest. However, what this show also demonstrated was how much they’d developed as a live band. Confident, assured and determined, with each of the band’s four members’ personalities shining through, it felt like the last time we’d get to see them in a rooms of this size, a point reaffirmed November’s sold out tour of 2000+ capacity venues. Arenas surely beckon, and deservedly so too.

—

Honourable Mentions

While the aforementioned 10 stand out for reasons mentioned above, there were numerous other shows which caught the eye in what’s been another incredible year for live music. The Killers headline performance at BBK Bilbao and subsequent world tour reiterated why they’re still held in such high regard as one of the most formidable live acts in the world. Similarly, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club‘s showstopping performance at Nottingham Rock City in November reminded us why people still care so much sixteen years after their debut while wetting the appetite for January’s eighth record Wrong Creatures. The return of Liam Gallagher in June at Brixton’s Electric venue might have raised eyebrows among those that saw him as a spent force after Beady Eye, but they were all proved wrong as he delivered an incredible, vocally flawless set of material old and new. Also rewinding back to the future as if they’d never been away were Nottingham shoegazers Amusement Parks On Fire, their hometown show last month at the Bodega setting the scene for what promises to be an exciting 2018. Elsewhere, Halifax trio The Orielles started the year emphatically at the Hebden Bridge Heavenly Weekender and ended it in similar style on their week-long UK tour, while Glaswegian outfit Spinning Coin rocked Sheffield’s Picturehouse Social in November and look set to do so throughout next year.

Discuss: Which were your favourite live shows of 2017? Who are you most looking forward to seeing next year? Join the discussion over on our music forum.

Eyre Llew photo by Emma Ford Davis.


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