Spoiler: A Complete Diversion was a ridiculously special night.
Last night, twenty one pilots made their highly-anticipated live return after some 14 months away from the stage.
As we've come to expect from Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun over the years, the duo yet again delivered another truly incredible night for the 5,000 fans watching on. Here's what we learned from A Complete Diversion @ London's O2 Academy Brixton on September 12…
THE SKELETON CLIQUE IS MORE FANATICAL THAN EVER
On any other day, the walk from Brixton tube up to the venue isn't… well… it isn't nice. When twenty one pilots are in town, though, all that changes. Stepping outside the station, you're instantly greeted with the band's new Trench-era yellow tape plastered over trees, walls and just about anything else in sight. The entire fanbase has already ditched the deep red of Blurryface and bought a yellow wardrobe to keep up with the band's new theme – and it looks ridiculously cool. Even more impressive, though, is the level of dedication that the Clique have gone to in terms of queueing, with some fans turning up five days ahead of the gig just to snag a spot on the barrier. Respect.
THE BLURRYFACE STAGE GET-UP IS STILL PARTLY AROUND (FOR NOW?!)
It's fair to say that no-one really knows what this one-off gig is: are twenty one pilots welcoming in Trench completely and giving us a preview of their forthcoming Bandito shows? Are they bidding farewell to Blurryface for one last time? Well, actually… it seems to be a bit of both. The set opens with an explosive Jumpsuit (and we'll get to that in a bit), but after Levitate and Heathens, the duo return to their Blurryface stage get-up for We Don't Believe What's On TV. And, quite frankly, it's pretty damn emotional seeing Tyler in his classic sunglasses and floral cardigan again for the first time in over a year. The frontman promises lots more surprises to come at future gigs, though…
THE NEW SONGS FROM TRENCH ARE ALREADY SET STAPLES
…but no, we can't pick a favourite just yet. Jumpsuit is very much the perfect opener, setting the tone for the rest of the night with its exhilarating bounce; Levitate is just as brilliantly breathless as it is on record – and most fans packed into the venue have already done a damn fine job of perfecting Tyler's impossible-to-keep-up-with rap; Nico And The Niners slots in between older classics The Judge and Lane Boy wonderfully; and then there's the sing-along to My Blood, which is a marvel as Tyler separates the crowd in two to sing the melodies.
TYLER AND JOSH HAVE A SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP WITH LONDON
In an impressively short space of time the duo have worked their way up to some of the capital's biggest venues – from the tiny Camden Barfly back in 2013, to two huuuuuuge nights at Alexandra Palace three years later. And things are still on the rise, as Tyler announces onstage that the duo have decided to add a third gig at The SSE Arena, Wembley next year on the Bandito World Tour. So they'll be playing to over 30,000 fans in three nights…
IT MIGHT BE A ONE-OFF DATE, BUT THEY HAVEN'T SCRIMPED ON PRODUCTION
…in fact, A Complete Diversion arguably boasts some of twenty one pilots' finest efforts yet. The band's Heavydirtysoul car has somehow been rolled onto the O2 Academy Brixton stage, with Tyler using it both a climbing frame and an impressive pyro-filled stage prop. And then there's all the classic moves: guys in hazmat suits during Lane Boy, multiple wardrobe changes, a whole bunch of CO2 cannons, and a ton of (yellow) confetti for set-closer Trees.
TYLER CAN STILL JUMP HIGHER THAN ANY OTHER HUMAN BEING ON THE PLANET
Perhaps it's because he's been holed up in his home studio for the past year and therefore has a load of pent-up energy, or maybe he's simply been practicing his leaps in-between writing new music, but Tyler's hurdles off his piano and the aforementioned Heavydirtysoul car are more gravity-defying than ever. We're assuming when they return again in March he'll be the first man to touch Wembley Arena's ceiling with no additional help – purely just the power in his legs?!
AND JOSH'S DRUM SOLOS ARE SOMEHOW EVEN MORE IMPRESSIVE
Watching Josh Dun smash the crap out of his kit whilst on top of a crowd is never not a ridiculously great sight to behold – whether it's above an audience of 5,000 or 50,000. With his new-and-improved yellow Trench drums, tonight the stickman's solo to enhance the typically chilled-out Ride is a complete stroke of genius – and further proof that he's currently one of the best drummers on the planet.
THE BANDITO WORLD TOUR IS NOT TO BE MISSED
If this is only a small teaser of what we can expect from the duo's forthcoming tour dates – and, as Tyler reveals, it is – then you'd be a fool to miss out on a single second of the Bandito World Tour. One of the most impressive things about this evening is it's a 13-song set, and even that leaves the crowd exhausted – both physically and emotionally – beyond belief. And with a whole bunch of emissions on the set list (Tear In My Heart, Migraine, Fairly Local, Guns For Hands, Goner – and anything pre-Vessel), it's even more of a reason to come back next time for a longer set…
ULTIMATELY, IT'S JUST SO GREAT TO HAVE THEM BACK…
Okay okay, this is super-cheesy… but it's true. Embracing the hysteria and experiencing the cathartic release that comes from the likes of singing your heart out to Holding On To You and Car Radio is a feeling few other bands can emulate, and it makes you realise just how much twenty one pilots have been missed in their year-long break. The good news is the Trench era is only just kicking into gear, and we've got a lot more to come from Tyler and Josh. Welcome back, guys.
Words: Emily Carter
Catch twenty one pilots live at the following:
October
16 Bridgestone Arena – Nashville, TN
17 United Center – Chicago, IL
19 Enterprise Center – St Louis, MO
20 Wisconsin Entertainment and Sports Center – Milwaukee, WI
21 Xcel Energy Center – St Paul, MN
23 Quicken Loans Arena – Cleveland, OH
24 Little Caesars Arena – Detroit, MI
26 TD Garden – Boston, MA
27 NYCB Live – Uniondale, NY
28 Wells Fargo Center – Philadelphia, PA
30 Madison Square Garden – New York, NY
31 Capital One Arena – Washington, DC
November
2 Philips Arena – Atlanta, GA
3 Amalie Arena – Tampa, FL
4 BB&T Center – Sunrise, FL
6 Toyota Center – Houston, TX
7 American Airlines Center – Dallas, TX
9 Talking Stick Resort Arena – Phoenix, AZ
10 The Forum – Inglewood, CA
11 Oracle Arena – Oakland, CA
13 Vivint Smart Home Arena – Salt Lake City, UT
15 Moda Center – Portland, OR
16 Tacoma Dome – Tacoma, WA
17 Taco Bell Arena – Boise, ID
19 Pepsi Center – Denver, CO
20 Pinnacle Bank Arena – Lincoln, NE
21 Sprint Center – Kansas City, MO
December
7 Perth Arena – Perth, Australia
10 Adelaide Entertainment Centre – Adelaide, Australia
13 Rod Laver Arena – Melbourne, Australia
16 Qudos Bank Arena – Sydney, Australia
18 Brisbane Entertainment Centre – Brisbane, Australia
21 Spark Arena – Auckland, New Zealand
January 2019
30 Palace of Sports – Kiev, Ukraine
February 2019
2 VTB Arena – Moscow, Russia
4 Ice Palace – St. Petersburg, Russia
6 Ice Hall – Helsinki, Finland
8 Ericsson Globe Arena – Stockholm, Sweden
9 Telenor Arena – Oslo, Norway
11 Royal Arena – Copenhagen, Denmark
12 Barclaycard Arena – Hamburg, Germany
14 Mercedes-Benz Arena – Berlin, Germany
15 Atlas Arena – Lodz, Poland
16 The O2 Arena – Prague, Czech Republic
17 Wiener Stadthalle – Vienna, Austria
21 Unipol Arena – Bologna, Italy
23 Hallenstadion Zurich – Zurich, Switzerland
24 Hanns-Martin-Schleyerhalle – Stuttgart, Germany
25 Lanxess Arena – Cologne, Germany
27 Genting Arena – Birmingham, United Kingdom
March 2019
1 3Arena – Dublin, UK
2 SSE Arena Belfast – Belfast, UK
4 The SSE Hydro Arena – Glasgow, UK
5 Manchester Arena – Manchester, UK
7 The SSE Arena, Wembley – London, UK
8 The SSE Arena, Wembley – London, UK
9 The SSE Arena, Wembley – London, UK
11 Accorhotels Arena – Paris, France
12 Ziggo Dome – Amsterdam, Netherlands
13 Palais 12 – Brussels, Belgium
15 Bizkaia Arena (BEC!) – Bilbao, Spain
16 WiZink Center – Madrid, Spain
17 Altice Arena – Lisbon, Portugal
twenty one pilots' new album Trench is due out on October 5 via Fueled By Ramen – pre-order it here.
