Radioactived's Reviews

[Taiga]

I'm not a huge albums guy. I only know a few of them so I think this is also kind of an excuse for me to start listening to them more often.
Reviews are assigned grades out of 10.

List:
twenty one pilots - Trench (8.3/10)
The Neighbourhood - Wiped Out! (7.7/10)
twenty one pilots – Blurryface (7.7/10)

[willapted33]

Jul 31, 2018 21:36:44 GMT -5 Taiga said:

Track 13: The Fall
I tend to dislike tracks with considerable length. This was no exception.
The track sounds good but it could've been better if it weren't 6 minutes long.
Grade: 7/10MoD

you better prepare yourself for Sing About Me I'm Dying of Thirst and Mortal Man 

[Mylo13 💜]

Nice review! I have been meaning to check out more Imagine Dragons material lol.

[Mylo13 💜]

Nice review, I've heard a bit of the album due to have a friend who's a big fan of Imagine Dragons. Cool stuff!

[Taiga]

Wiped Out! (2015)
The Neighbourhood

Track 1: A Moment of Silence
The 30-second intro is just that: a moment of silence. Thus, I won't rate it.
Grade: N/A

Track 2: Prey
The actual album opener is pretty reasonable.
The pray/prey homophone is pretty clever, if you ask me. The riff is nice.
Yet it feels like something is off. (Pun intended?)
Grade: 7/10

Track 3: Cry Baby
I still can't believe the only uplifting and catchy song on the album wasn't used as lead single. (BROCKHAMPTON's Kevin Abstract seems to agree with me.)
The mellow riff is awesome and the lyrics are pretty relatable. Ah, the Sweater Weather 2.0 this could've been.
Grade: 10/10

Track 4: Wiped Out!
I like how The Neighbourhood likes to be experimental in some songs.
A few of the things they did here worked (and were kept for the sound of the third album), such as the 80s retro vibe.
Some of them also didn't, especially from the bridge onward.
Grade: 6/10

Track 5: The Beach
The lyrics in here are somewhat similar as those from Cry Baby, though far darker.
Some of the eerie sound from the previous track is also here and repeats throughout the album.
Grade: 6.5/10

Track 6: Daddy Issues
Daddy Issues is personally related to Jesse's life (i.e. his father), a theme that will also be present on other tracks later on.
The difference is that, in here, he uses a young girl's point-of-view as to externalize his problems.
It resonated well with their base, given it's a fan favorite.
Grade: 8/10

Track 7: Baby Came Home 2 / Valentines
Baby Came Home was present on The NBHD's debut EP I'm Sorry.... (It's a nice song, check it out later, not my focus here.)
Baby Came Home 2 takes some of the same sound as its sequel but is less interesting.
Valentines, though, manages to be even less interesting.
Grade: 5/10

Track 8: Greetings from Califournia
An ode to their Golden State roots, Jesse talks about the good and especially the bad from life in California.
He also mentions his father's death (he died about a year before Wiped Out's release) for the first time.
Grade: 8/10

Track 9: Ferrari
Another track that could've used the single treatment.
I like to think Ferrari is a sonic evolution of their debut album's single Afraid. A little less darker, but still.
It's quite Alt radio-ready and the lyrics are relatable to many -- it's about how one can feel oceans apart from their lover sometimes.
Grade: 9.5/10

Track 10: Single
The acoustic-based sound is a nice touch but the lyrics could've used more work.
It's about Jesse's relationship with his girlfriend, i.e. personal stuff, but still.
Grade: 7/10

Track 11: R.I.P. 2 My Youth
Albeit being the song that killed their momentum on Alt radio, I do understand why this was chosen as the lead.
It's the song that represents better the album. It's raw. It's dark. It demonstrates all of Jesse's struggles with life and how he feels he's dead inside.
But in the end of the 3:25 song with killer sounds, turns out what he wants is what we -- well, at least I -- want: to dream with the stars.
Grade: 10/10

Too long, didn't read the track-by-track
Though some tracks feel dragged out and cheap, Wiped Out! demonstrates that The NBHD can take simple acoustic sounds to another level (if they want to).

The best: R.I.P. 2 My Youth and Cry Baby (10/10), Ferrari (9.5/10)
The worst: Baby Came Home 2 / Valentines (5/10), Wiped Out! (6/10) and The Beach (6.5/10)
Overall grade: 7.7/10

Tags willapted33 crazyb Mylo13 💜 DistrictTwelve MoD

[Taiga]

It's been two months since my last review so I decided to revive this thread.
Today marks the release of what is arguably the album I was expecting the most in 2018, Trench.
I thought it'd be fitting to do my first impression review ASAP.

Trench (2018)
twenty one pilots

Track 1: Jumpsuit
I thought Jumpsuit didn't fit as a lead single.
Yet that choice was the boldest statement they could've done this era: they simply don't care about pop radio (anymore).
Perhaps experimental-heavy wasn't what we expected -- after all, this one was a grower -- but now that I think of it, it's the perfect opener for the era.
Scratch what I said above.
Grade: 10/10

Track 2: Levitate
The first time I heard Levitate I was so hyped I simply had no words to describe what I felt. Still don't.
The rap is just flames, as is the drum solo. Damn, Joshua!
Grade: 9.5/10

Track 3: Morph
The first new song in here brings something else from the table that I was not expecting based on the songs preceding it.
The instrumentation has a nice ring to it. I was turned off by the vocal effect, though.
Grade: 7/10

Track 4: My Blood
What I initially thought to be the weakest of the four singles grew on me then shrunk again within a few days.

The synth-pop 80s vibe was largely the reason it grew on me. The heavy repetition of "you don't need to run" made the song burn on me.

Still, all's well that ends well. It's grown on me again, especially after watching the video.

Grade: 9.5/10

Track 5: Chlorine
When I first learned there'd be a song called Chlorine on the album, the chemist in me was in peak interest.
The mention of RADIOACTIVE! decay, lead and other science-related stuff throughout the lyrics definitely lived up to my expectation.
The beat is definitely a chemical to my ears. The 5:24-long track (!) flew by.
Grade: 10/10

Track 6: Smithereens
Didn't expect a love song in here.
But guess what: Tyler says he had to do a record like this for his wife.
Cute little track. As is Tyler, btw.
Grade: 8/10

Track 7: Neon Gravestones
Suicide isn't nothing new in the discography of twenty one pilots, but I wasn't expecting that after the tone Smithereens set. The contrast is hugely noticeable.
Tyler criticizes the romanticizing of suicide by the media akin to what's happening in the media this past year.
Grade: 7.5/10

Track 8: The Hype
How do you want me to not believe the hype when all I had in the last three months was the hype for Trench, Tyler???
Grade: 7/10

Track 9: Nico and the Niners
Ah yes, the strong contender for my award of the Best Song of 2018.
The reggae-tinged roaring anthem for rebels throughout the world shows that there's no way Dema control us.
East is up and that's all I care about.
Grade: 10/10

Track 10: Cut My Lip
Oh look, another reggae-tinged beat.
Shame it isn't as good as Nico, but that doesn't take its merit.
Grade: 8.5/10

Track 11: Bandito
Unlike Chlorine, I could sense this one was dragging itself out.
Grade: 6/10

Track 12: Pet Cheetah
As a shout out to the clique, it sounds nice. Overall, not so much.
Grade: 7/10

Track 13: Legend
An ode to Tyler's grandfather, who died while Trench was being recorded.
You can sense the bitter-sweetness of this song. It's palpable.
Grade: 9/10

Track 14: Leave the City
The album closer concludes the story of Clancy and his Dema escape. Even far from home, Trench feels like a second home.
That's what the album wants to do with the fan base that got here through Blurryface (myself included).
Grade: 8/10

Too long, didn't read the track-by-track
Trench is the leading candidate to AOTY for me.
Solid production and lyrics reinforced that twenty one pilots doesn't need to create earworms for pop radio.
If pop wants to play them, so be it. But they made it clear it's not their focus. At least not on the majority of the tracks.

The best: Nico and the Niners, Jumpsuit and Chlorine (10/10)
The worst: Bandito (6/10), Pet Cheetah and The Hype (7/10)
Overall grade: 8.3/10

Tags willapted33 Mylo13 💜 DistrictTwelve MoD

[thelegends]

Trench is so underrated.


Plus, I find it funny (and correct to an extent) that in your review of On Top Of The World you said that it is a feel good anthem. It was in both the soundtracks of FIFA 13 and PES 13 (two rival football video games)

[Taiga]

Blurryface (2015)
twenty one pilots

Track 1: Heavydirtysoul
The album's opener set a somber tone of repent after doing bad things (as humans usually do).
Oh, the irony in saying it's not rap while rapping is characteristic of Tyler.
Grade: 7/10

Track 2: Stressed Out
The song that made twenty one pilots known to everyone (myself included).
I used to love it, but now I feel like I've outgrown it.
(Which is ironic, considering the childhood nostalgia the lyrics bring.)
Grade: 8/10

Track 3: Ride
This used to be my favorite twenty one pilots song. (That is, before Nico and the Niners came out.)
The depressed lyrics contrasting with the sunny, reggae-tinged instrumental is irony at its best.
Unlike Stressed Out, though, this has aged far better. It feels less dated. Still sounds really good.
(Did I mention this was #1 on my charts about two months ago?)
Grade: 10/10

Track 4: Fairly Local
Fairly Local is fairly good. (I'll see myself out.)
No, really, the fact this got radio play -- even though it'd never be on the radio -- proves it.
Also, the critique-heavy tone of the lyrics is always a plus for me.
Grade: 8.5/10

Track 5: Tear In My Heart
Even in a cute song about loving someone, here's Tyler criticizing the government.
(Did I mention I love Tyler for being like this?)
Grade: 8/10

Track 6: Lane Boy
Oh look, more critique attitude. Stop it, Tyler, I'm blushing already.
In all seriousness tho: "I wasn’t raised in the hood / But I know a thing or two about pain and darkness".
That's one of the many lyrics from twenty one pilots that accurately depicts my life and pretty much all of friends'.
Plus, the "don't trust a song that's flawless" motto for the clique first came up here.
Grade: 8/10

Track 7: The Judge
The ukulele is cute and all, but this didn't click with me then and hasn't clicked with me now. It feels as though the song drags itself out.
The only plus is the random Josh Dun ad-lib toward the end. (Tyler sarcastically says this is the one line Josh writes every album.)
Grade: 6/10

Track 8: Doubt
The EDM-esque effect on the chorus still sounds weird to me.
(Fun fact: Tyler already mentions "the bishops" in here, a theme that would later be recurrent on Trench.)
Grade: 6.5/10

Track 9: Polarize
I'm a sucker for all science stuff.
So when a song is named after the physical phenomenon of polarization, I already expect to like it. That was definitely the case.
The song being cure didn't hurt, tho. Also, the random line in Spanish was a nice touch -- even though I don't speak Spanish -- lol.
Grade: 8/10

Track 10: We Don't Believe What's On TV
The instrumentation in here is really nice.
It helps with the cuteness atmosphere the track brings.
Grade: 8/10

Track 11: Message Man
I'm also a sucker for all meta stuff.
"These lyrics aren't for everyone / Only few understand" refers to the fact that the chorus isn't about the "message man" -- but rather the "message, man".
This is something I honestly had no idea up until checking the lyrics for this review. Guess I was one of the ones who didn't initially understand.
Grade: 7.5/10

Track 12: Hometown
Sonically speaking, this is hugely reminiscent of 80s sound. (Something we'd also see with My Blood down the Trench line.)
Still, something doesn't click with me every time I hear this song.
Grade: 7/10

Track 13: Not Today
Yay, more meta stuff!
"This one's a contradiction because of how happy it sounds / But the lyrics are so down" is a testament to much of twenty one pilots' catalog.
(See Ride above as their most-known example.)
Grade: 7/10

Track 14: Goner
Damn, this hits right in the feels. It's an instant downer.
I'm not crying. You're crying.
Grade: 8.5/10

Too long, didn't read the track-by-track
Blurryface is a mixed bag of feelings and songs as twenty one pilots go from being regional at best (pun intended) to the pop radio waves while criticizing everything in-between. I'm a sucker for these kinds of things, so it's not surprising I like it.

The best: Ride (10/10), Fairly Local and Goner (8.5/10)
The worst: The Judge (6/10), Doubt (6.5/10) and Hometown (7/10)
Overall grade: 7.7/10

Tags willapted33 Mylo13 💜 DistrictTwelve MoD