Hey there, I'm wondering if anyone else here likes this band. I'm surprised none of their songs have made AM yet. Last year, they had two songs in the top 5 on the Hot 100, something only the Beatles and Elvis have done. Of course, popularity doesn't necessarily mean they're a good band, but I think it's worth discussing the apparent disconnect between the critics and the masses.
From my perspective, Stressed Out is one of the best songs of the decade. The lyrics are fairly interesting, and the chorus in particular features a very strange but catchy melody.
Does anyone have any theories why critics don't like them? Songs like Ride and Heathens show a clear gift for melody IMO. They're not a very quirky band, so that may hurt their chances, but critics have praised decidedly non-quirky acts like Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift, so I wonder what their reasoning is.
twenty one pilots
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veganvalentine
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twenty one pilots
Last edited by veganvalentine on Fri Jan 20, 2017 5:36 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: twenty one pilots
I think twenty one pilots are doing okay (not great) critically. I like that they're probably the only act that is riding high in the pop charts that can still be truly called rock but I'm afraid their music is suited for this era and most likely be dated by the time their teenage fans become working blokes although they'll probably end up more like Linkin Park rather than Limp Bizkit when their career is all said and done but I'd be happy to be proven wrong. Not all critics hate them as listed below:
Blurryface album: Metacritic: 80/100, AllMusic: 4/5 stars, Alternative Press: 4.5/5 stars
"Stressed Out" 2 Grammy nominations: Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, #62 Song for 2016 according to Billboard critics, #25 sound of the future by the NY Times.
"Heathens", 3 Grammy nominations: Best Rock Performance, Best Rock Song and Best Song Written for Visual Media, #31 Song for 2016 according to Billboard critics, #13 for Fuse.
Blurryface album: Metacritic: 80/100, AllMusic: 4/5 stars, Alternative Press: 4.5/5 stars
"Stressed Out" 2 Grammy nominations: Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, #62 Song for 2016 according to Billboard critics, #25 sound of the future by the NY Times.
"Heathens", 3 Grammy nominations: Best Rock Performance, Best Rock Song and Best Song Written for Visual Media, #31 Song for 2016 according to Billboard critics, #13 for Fuse.
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veganvalentine
- Wannabe
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Re: twenty one pilots
It's interesting that they're classified as rock as I'm pretty sure guitars are largely absent in their work, but I guess they're as close rock as mainstream pop is going to get. Not sure I agree with you about how dated their songs will sound or the comparison to Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park. I do foresee, however, this era of music (with all the autotuning, keyboards, programmed percussion, and reverb-drenched vocals) possibly sounding more dated than any era since the 80s.
You make a good point that twenty one pilots have received some acclaim, although the Grammy nominations don't surprise me as I expect them to echo popular taste more so than critics. As for Blurryface, I honestly didn't find much of the album that interesting outside of Stressed Out and Ride, but I only listened to it once. Also, Stressed Out didn't become popular until January 2016, so that may have hurt its performance in the 2015 EOY lists.
You make a good point that twenty one pilots have received some acclaim, although the Grammy nominations don't surprise me as I expect them to echo popular taste more so than critics. As for Blurryface, I honestly didn't find much of the album that interesting outside of Stressed Out and Ride, but I only listened to it once. Also, Stressed Out didn't become popular until January 2016, so that may have hurt its performance in the 2015 EOY lists.