Corvid's Corner - Vessel 🎶💽

Vessel by Twenty-One Pilots:

Welcome to Corvid’s Corner! This is a place for me to geek out about whatever video game I’m playing or music I’m listening to, and write about it in a longer form than a staff pick. If you try this album on for size, please let me know! I’d love to hear your thoughts!

 I’ve been a fan of Twenty-One Pilots since I was in college. Blurryface was my first album by the Columbus based artists, but I think Vessel is my favorite. I’ve seen them in concert once, and they were great! Vessel was released in 2013 as their third studio album, and you can request the CD from the library! Their music is a bit deceptive—the chords and melodies are upbeat, but the lyrics talk about heavy topics. The lyricism of Twenty-One Pilots is the best part of their music. Tyler Joseph is skilled with wordplay, and the songs in the ‘Must Listen’ section are the ones I think are the greatest examples of his craft on this album. Let me know what you think!

Something cool about this band is that the songs and music videos contain quite a bit of lore. There’s a through-line, a story in the message. Vessel doesn’t fit into the story as a whole, but I wanted to mention the lore since it is a fun part of the experience. The albums aren’t quite concept albums, but most of the songs on the newer albums have significance within the story. If lore intimidates you, don’t worry–the music can absolutely be enjoyed without looking into the symbolism. I wasn’t aware of the lore until this year, with the announcement of a new album coming out in a few months, and I’ve been a fan for nearly a decade.

I could wax poetic about every song this band has produced, because they all have heart, but I’ll let you determine for yourself what you think and only focus on one track. Guns For Hands is the 10th song on the album, and was written as a response to fans sharing their struggles with Tyler Joseph at a meet-and-greet, and how his music has helped them through difficult times. In a 2019 interview with British publication Rock Sound, Joseph talked about this interaction with fans, "thank goodness it had a lot to do with them overcoming it and using music and songs, in particular my songs, to help them get over that…" Joseph was inspired to write a track "about taking that negative energy and aiming it at something else, not aiming it at yourself." Joseph’s songwriting abilities always produce music fans can lean on in hard times. He has always been very open about his struggle with mental illness, and that comes through in his songs. His candor is a large reason I enjoy Twenty-One Pilots so much.

     Must Listen: Migraine, Car Radio, Guns for Hands, and Trees. 

     For alternative music with a heavy focus on lyricism, give Vessel by Twenty-One Pilots a try!