twenty one pilots in Indianapolis reviewed

The crowd, a sea of red, white, and black (The trademark colors of twenty one pilots) clustered together in the hopes of catching a glimpse of Tyler and Josh amongst the chaos that is a twenty one pilots show. Despite the younger age range of the audience, anyone in the alt scene will tell you their fans go hard, and the band encourages it by going harder. Not a single person was sitting when the main act went on, and the majority of the audience was on someone’s shoulders at one point or another during the show. Fans lined the outside of The Lawn at White River beginning at 9 am Saturday for the sold out twenty one pilots show on Sunday. Finish Ticket started the show off on a strong, energetic note and were more well-known than most openers. Echosmith then treated the audience to a charismatic and genuine performance, even though bassist Noah Sierota had recently punctured a lung and played sitting down with an oxygen tank. They began the show with the Blurryface aesthetic- red lights, strobe lights, and the trademark white mask and skeleton hoodie. Josh was all over the place, including the ground as he shocked the audience with a death drop during “HeavyDirtySoul.” The duo then flip-flopped between lighter songs such as “Ride”, “House of Gold”, and “The Judge”, and more intense songs like “Message Man”, “Doubt”, “Stressed Out”, and “Polarize.” Some songs such as “Semi-Automatic” and “Addict with a Pen” were stitched together as the guys tried to bridge the gap between their first two albums and their most current. Masks, creative lighting, and screens played critical roles in the energy and aesthetic of the show, and Tyler and Josh were more than eager to play them up. The dynamic of only two people on stage and the contrast of the piano and drums made for a unique and energy-filled set. It was clear not by a lack of passion, but rather the grace and skilled execution that Josh and Tyler had performed the set many times. The best way to describe the set would be intense, both in their newer almost dark and their older more emotional style. While something was a bit lacking in terms of intimacy with the audience, it’s hard to appear down to Earth when surrounded by thousands of fans who are obsessed with you. The “special” aspects of the performance were stunning. Josh appeared on the other side of the venue amazingly quickly after disappearing from the stage during “Car Radio.” Most mind-blowing was the “drum island” bit after trees, when both boys played a drum duet on small platforms- all held up by the crowd. Overall, the audience had some high expectations, but twenty one pilots blew it out of the water. The intensity and artistry left a lasting impression that has many a teenage girl declaring in the ‘best night of her life’. With an over the top (hah) performance like that, there’s only question left: Where will they go next? -Kelly Fox [lg_slideshow folder=\”2015/twenty one pilots in Indy/Finish Ticket/\”] [lg_slideshow folder=\”2015/twenty one pilots in Indy/Echosmith/\”] [lg_slideshow folder=\”2015/twenty one pilots in Indy/twenty one pilots/\”]