Blurryface

Blurryface
Studio album by Twenty One Pilots
Released May 17, 2015 (2015-05-17)
Recorded Serenity West Recording, Paramount Recording Studios, Hollywood, California;
Can Am, Tarzana, California;
Sonic Lounge Studios, Grove City, Ohio;
Livingston Studios, London;
Werewolf Heart, Los Angeles, California
Genre
Length 52:23
Label Fueled by Ramen
Producer
Twenty One Pilots chronology
Vessel
(2013)		 Blurryface
(2015)
Singles from Blurryface
  1. "Fairly Local"
    Released: March 17, 2015
  2. "Tear in My Heart"
    Released: April 6, 2015
  3. "Stressed Out"
    Released: April 28, 2015
  4. "Lane Boy"
    Released: May 4, 2015[6]
  5. "Ride"
    Released: May 12, 2015[7]

Blurryface (stylized as BLURRYFΛCE) is the fourth studio album by the American duo Twenty One Pilots. It is the band's second studio album released through Fueled by Ramen. Originally set to be released on May 19, 2015, it was released two days early by the band on May 17, via iTunes.[8] The album was preceded by its lead single, "Fairly Local", released on March 17, 2015. As of March 2016, the album has sold 792,000 copies in the United States. The album contains the Billboard top-five single "Stressed Out", which reached number two in February 2016.

Background and recording

Following the release of their third album Vessel (2013), the band toured extensively in support of the album worldwide.[9] While on tour the band had a portable recording studio that allowed them to lay down ideas.[10]

"Heavydirtysoul", "Ride", "Fairly Local", "Tear in My Heart", "Lane Boy" and "Doubt" were recorded with producer Ricky Reed at Serenity West Recording in Hollywood, California.[11] "Stressed Out", "Polarize", "Hometown" and "Not Today" were recorded with producer Mike Elizondo at Can Am in Tarzana, California.[11] "Ride" was recorded with Reed at Sonic Lounge Studios in Grove City, Ohio.[11] "The Judge" was recorded with producer Mike Crossey at Livingston Studios in London.[11] "We Don't Believe What's on TV" and "Goner" were recorded with Reed at Paramount Recording Studios in Hollywood, California.[11] "Message Man" was recorded with Tim Anderson at Werewolf Heart in Los Angeles, California.[11] The album was mixed by Neal Avron, with assistance from Scott Skrzynski, at The Casita in Hollywood, California.[11] The album was mastered by Chris Gehringer at Sterling Sound in New York City, New York.[11]

Concept

The album is named after a character the band created called Blurryface. According to Joseph, he "represents all the things that I as an individual, but also everyone around, are insecure about."[12] Joseph wears black paint on his hands and neck during his live shows and music videos for the album, to represent Blurryface, saying: "Very dramatic, I know, but it helps me get into that character."[13]

Artwork and packaging

Art direction and design was done by Brandon Rike, Reel Bear Media and Virgilio Tzaj.[11] Rob Gold was the art manager, while Josh Skubel was in charge of packaging production.[11] Jabari Jacobs provided photography.[11]

Release

On March 17, 2015, the band announced the album's title, track listing and release date.[14] The band's fans crashed their website attempting to pre-order the album.[15] The band released their new single "Fairly Local" on the same day accompanied by its music video which premiered on official Fueled by Ramen YouTube channel.[16]

On April 6, the band released the second single of the album, "Tear in My Heart", with an official music video released through YouTube.[17] The third single, "Stressed Out", was released on April 28[18][19] with a music video.[20] On May 4, 2015, the band posted a YouTube video streaming the audio of the album's 6th track, "Lane Boy",[21] and released "Ride" seven days later through the same media;[22] both were also singles, being released on the 4th and 12th, respectively.[6][7] Between the 11th and the 14th the band toured the UK.[23] The music video for "Ride" was released on May 14,[24] directed by Reel Bear Media.[25]

On May 19, 2015, the duo performed at the iHeartRadio Theater LA in Burbank, CA to celebrate the album's release.[26] The concert was livestreamed on iHeartRadio's website. The band has shows and festival stops lasting from May 19 to December 14.[27] On July 20, the music video for "Lane Boy" was released.[28] The band is set to play the UK in November.[29] The tour sold out in a matter of minutes.[30]

Reception

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic80/100[31]
Review scores
SourceRating
Alternative Press[32]
The Austin Chronicle[4]
Billboard[5]
Cleveland.comB[33]
Kerrang![31]
Rolling Stone Australia[34]
Sputnikmusic3.5/5[2]

Blurryface received mostly positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from music critics, the album has received an average score of 80, based on 5 reviews, signifying "generally favorable reviews".[31] Garrett Kamps of Billboard hailed the album as a "hot mess (in a good way)", but gave it a mixed review, saying that Blurryface "doesn't quite reach the heights of Vessel".[5]

Sputnikmusic and Alternative Press gave Blurryface favorable reviews, with the latter being the more positive. Their critic, Jason Pettigrew, described the album as "wonderful" and hailed the band's mix of genres in their songs, highlighting "Ride", "Polarize", "Message Man", "Tear in My Heart", "We Don't Believe What's on TV", "Goner" and "Lane Boy" in his review.[32]

The album was ranked at number 1 in Alternative Press's "10 Essential Records of 2015" list.[3] Jason Pettigrew of Alternative Press wrote that the band combined "hip-hop vistas, tinges of reggae, everyman pop and furious electronic urgency and bellicose sadness into an impossibly cohesive record."[3] The album was included at number 2 on Rock Sound's top 50 releases of 2015 list.[35] Blurryface was nominated for Album Of The Year at the 2016 Alternative Press Music Awards.[36]

Commercial performance

Blurryface was a success in the United States. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, selling 147,000 copies in the United States in its first week, making it Twenty One Pilots' highest charting album in the U.S. It also marked the band's highest opening week in the U.S.[37] The group also made their first appearance on the UK top 40 with Blurryface debuting at number 14. By November 2015, the album sold 500,000 copies worldwide.[38] The following month, it was announced the album's U.S. sales was over 505,000 copies.[39] By January 2016, the album had sold 592,000 copies in the U.S.[40] Two months later, the album's U.S. sales had risen to 753,000 copies.[41] By the end of March, the album's U.S. sales stood at 792,000.[42] The album has since been certified gold in Canada[43] and platinum in the U.S.[44]

Track listing

All songs written by Tyler Joseph.[11]

No. Title Length
1. "Heavydirtysoul"   3:54
2. "Stressed Out"   3:22
3. "Ride"   3:34
4. "Fairly Local"   3:27
5. "Tear in My Heart"   3:08
6. "Lane Boy"   4:13
7. "The Judge"   4:57
8. "Doubt"   3:11
9. "Polarize"   3:46
10. "We Don't Believe What's on TV"   2:57
11. "Message Man"   4:00
12. "Hometown"   3:54
13. "Not Today"   3:58
14. "Goner"   3:56

Personnel

Personnel per booklet.[11]

Twenty One Pilots

Additional musicians
  • Ricky Reed – programming (tracks 1, 3–6, 8 and 14), additional vocals (tracks 1 and 8), bass (tracks 3–6, 10 and 14)
  • Mike Elizondo – upright bass (track 2), programming (tracks 2, 12 and 13), keyboards (tracks 2, 9, 12 and 13), bass (tracks 9, 12 and 13), synth bass (tracks 9 and 12), guitar (tracks 12 and 13), Hammond B3 (track 13), vocals (track 13)
  • Mike Crossey – programming, bass, synths and gang vocals (track 7)
  • Jonathan Gilmore – gang vocals (track 7)
  • Tim Anderson – synths and programming (track 11)
  • Danny T. Levin – trumpet, trombone and euphonium (track 13)
  • David Moyer – tenor sax, alto sax, baritone sax and flute (track 13)
  • LunchMoney Lewis – additional vocals (track 8)
Additional personnel
  • Pete Ganbarg – A&R
  • Brandon Rike – art direction, design
  • Reel Bear Media – art direction, design
  • Virgilio Tzaj – art direction, design
  • Jabari Jacobs – photography
  • Rob Gold – art management
  • Josh Skubel – packaging production
Production
  • Tyler Joseph – executive production, co-production
  • Chris Woltman – executive production
  • Ricky Reed – executive production, production (tracks 1, 3–6, 8, 10 and 14)
  • Mike Elizondo – production (tracks 2, 9, 12 and 13)
  • Mike Crossey – production (track 7)
  • Tim Anderson – production (track 11)
  • Neal Avron – mixing
  • Chris Gehringer – mastering
  • Drew Kapner – engineering (tracks 1, 3–6, 8, 10 and 14)
  • Adam Hawkins – engineering (tracks 2, 9, 12 and 13)
  • Joe Viers – engineering (track 3)
  • Jonathan Gilmore – engineering (track 7)
  • Chris Spilfogel – engineering (track 11)
  • Scott Skrzynski – assistance
  • Michael Peterson – assistance (tracks 1, 4, 6 and 8)
  • Brent Arrowood – assistance (tracks 2, 9, 12 and 13)
  • Alex Gruszecki – assistance (tracks 3–5)
  • Victor Luevanos – assistance (tracks 10 and 14)
  • Seth Perez – assistance (track 11)

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Chart (2015–16) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[46] 11
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[47] 12
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[48] 81
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[49] 4
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[50] 15
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[51] 32
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[52] 32
French Albums (SNEP)[53] 97
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[54] 31
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[55] 39
Italian Albums (FIMI)[56] 40
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[57] 61
Korean Albums (Gaon)[58] 77
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[59] 6
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[60] 26
Polish Albums (ZPAV)[61] 27
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[62]
[63]		 9
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[64] 26
UK Albums (OCC)[65] 14
US Billboard 200[66] 1
US Billboard Vinyl Albums[67] 1

Year-end charts

Chart (2015) Position
US Billboard 200[68] 31
US Billboard Digital Albums[69] 19
US Billboard Top Rock Albums[70] 7

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Canada (Music Canada)[43] Gold 40,000
United Kingdom (BPI)[71] Gold 100,000
United States (RIAA)[44] Platinum 792,000[41]

^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

Country Date
 Australia[72] May 15, 2015
 Germany
 Japan
 Ireland
 Netherlands
 Finland May 18, 2015
 Denmark
 France
 Poland
 United Kingdom
 Europe May 19, 2015
 Canada
 United States

References

Citations
  1. 1 2 3 Curcic, Andja (June 5, 2015). "Album Review: Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface". Renowned for Sound. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 SowingSeason (May 20, 2015). "Twenty One Pilots - Blurryface". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Pettigrew 2015, p. 96
  4. 1 2 Curtin, Kevin (October 2, 2015). "ACL Fest 2015 Saturday Record Review – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface (Fueled by Ramen)". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 Kamps, Garrett (May 19, 2015). "Blurryface - twenty one pilots". Billboard. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
  6. 1 2 "Lane Boy - Twenty One Pilots - Release Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
  7. 1 2 "Ride - Twenty One Pilots - Release Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
  8. ↑ "SURPRISE! Twenty One Pilots Release "Blurryface" Early!". Radio 104.5. May 17, 2015. Retrieved May 18, 2015.
  9. ↑ Thomas, Fred. "Twenty One Pilots | Biography". allmusic.com. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  10. ↑ Tom (June 14, 2014). ""We’re used to not fitting in…" – twenty one pilots". HMV. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Blurryface (Booklet). Twenty One Pilots. Fueled by Ramen. 2015. 7567-86692-2.
  12. ↑ "Twenty One Pilots Explain Why Their Album Is Called "Blurry Face" - MTV News". YouTube. April 28, 2015. Retrieved May 18, 2015.
  13. ↑ "Um, Why Is The Dude From Twenty One Pilots Covered In Black Goo?". MTV News.
  14. ↑ Ritchie, Andy (March 17, 2015). "Twenty One Pilots Just Dropped A New Track, Announced An Album And Four UK Dates. WOW.". Rock Sound Magazine. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  15. ↑ Bird, Ryan (July 2015). Bird, Ryan, ed. "Who Are Ya?". Rock Sound (London: Freeway Press Inc.) (201): 69. ISSN 1465-0185.
  16. ↑ Whitt, Cassie. "Hear twenty one pilots' eerie new single "Fairly Local" from impending album 'Blurryface' - Alternative Press". Alternative Press. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
  17. ↑ twenty one pilots: Tear In My Heart [Official Video]; YouTube, April 6, 2015
  18. ↑ "Twenty One Pilots: Stressed Out - Music on Google Play". google.com. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
  19. ↑ "Twenty One Pilots - Stressed Out MP3 Music". cduniverse.com. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
  20. ↑ Biddulph, Andy (April 28, 2015). "This New Twenty One Pilots Video Is Adorable". Rock Sound Magazine. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  21. ↑ Emily. "twenty one pilots Stream New Song, Lane Boy". Kerrang!. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
  22. ↑ twenty one pilots: Ride (Audio). YouTube. May 11, 2015. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
  23. ↑ Biddulph, Andy (April 28, 2015). "This Twenty One Pilots Video Is Really Quite Confusing". Rock Sound Magazine. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  24. ↑ Biddulph, Andy (May 14, 2015). "Twenty One Pilots Have Posted A (Quite Literally) Dark Video For ‘Ride’". Rock Sound Magazine. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  25. ↑ twenty one pilots: Ride (Video). YouTube. May 13, 2015. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  26. ↑ "iHeartRadio LIVE with twenty one pilots". iHeartRadio. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  27. ↑ "Tour". Twenty One Pilots' official website. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  28. ↑ Biddulph, Andy (July 20, 2015). "Watch Twenty One Pilots’ Video For ‘Lane Boy’". Rock Sound Magazine. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
  29. ↑ Biddulph, Andy (May 12, 2015). "Twenty One Pilots Unveil New Track, Announce ANOTHER UK Tour". Rock Sound Magazine. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  30. ↑ Travers 2015, p. 5
  31. 1 2 3 "Critic Reviews for Blurryface". Metacritic. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  32. 1 2 Pettigrew, Jason (May 19, 2015). "twenty one pilots - Blurryface". Alternative Press. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
  33. ↑ Smith, Troy L. (May 18, 2015). "Twenty One Pilots' 'Blurryface' leaves a haze of disappointment (album review)". Cleveland.com. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
  34. ↑ Yates, Rod (May 11, 2015). "Twenty-One Pilots - Blurryface". Rolling Stone Australia. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
  35. ↑ Bird, ed. 2016, p. 29
  36. ↑ Whitt, Cassie (March 18, 2016). "Here are the nominees for the 2016 AP Music Awards!". Alternative Press. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
  37. ↑ "Blurryface flies to number one of Billboard 200". Billboard.
  38. ↑ Garner 2015, p. 21
  39. ↑ Caulfield, Keith (December 23, 2015). "Billboard 200 Chart Moves: Taylor Swift's 'Fearless' Surpasses 7 Million Sold in U.S.". Billboard. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  40. ↑ Caulfield, Keith (January 4, 2016). "Adele's Hello Tops Hot 100 for 10th Week as Twenty One Pilots Fly to Top 10". Billboard. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  41. 1 2 Trust, Gary (March 3, 2016). "Twenty One Pilots Fly to No. 1 on Pop Songs Chart With 'Stressed Out'". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  42. ↑ Rutherford, Kevin (March 29, 2016). "Twenty One Pilots 'Ride' to No. 1 on Alternative Songs Chart". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  43. 1 2 "Canadian album certifications – Twenty One Pilots – Blurry Face". Music Canada.
  44. 1 2 "American album certifications – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
  45. ↑ "ブラーリーフェイス" [Blurryface] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved May 26, 2015.
  46. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 23, 2015.
  47. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  48. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 26, 2015.
  49. ↑ "Twenty One Pilots – Chart history" Billboard Canadian Albums Chart for Twenty One Pilots.
  50. ↑ http://hitlisten.nu/. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  51. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
  52. ↑ "Twenty One Pilots: Blurryface" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved January 10, 2016.
  53. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
  54. ↑ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  55. ↑ "Top 40 album DVD és válogatáslemez-lista – 2016. 16. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved April 28, 2016.
  56. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
  57. ↑ "トゥエンティ・ワン・パイロッツの作品" [Twenty One Pilots] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
  58. ↑ "Gaon Weekly Albums Chart April 24–30, 2016". Gaon Music Chart (South Korea). Retrieved 5 May 2016.
  59. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
  60. ↑ "VG-lista - Twenty One Pilots / Blurryface".
  61. ↑ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLIS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved April 28, 2016.
  62. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
  63. ↑ http://www.sverigetopplistan.se/. Click on "Veckans albumlista".
  64. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 6, 2016.
  65. ↑ "{{{artist}}} | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart Retrieved May 26, 2015.
  66. ↑ "Twenty One Pilots – Chart history (Billboard 200)". billboard.com. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
  67. ↑ "Vinyl Albums : Aug 22, 2015". billboard.com. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
  68. ↑ "Top Billboard 200 Albums : Dec 31, 2015 | Billboard Chart Archive". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  69. ↑ "Digital Albums : Dec 31, 2015 | Billboard Chart Archive". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  70. ↑ "Top Rock Albums : Dec 31, 2015 | Billboard Chart Archive". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  71. ↑ "British album certifications – Twenty One Pilots – Blurryface". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved May 6, 2016. Enter Blurryface in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Gold in the field By Award. Click Search
  72. ↑ "Blurryface". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
Sources
  • Bird, Ryan, ed. (January 2016). "Top 50 Releases of the Year". Rock Sound (London: Freeway Press Inc.) (208). ISSN 1465-0185. 
  • Garner, George (November 7, 2015). McMahon, James, ed. "On the Road". Kerrang! (London: Bauer Media Group) (1593). ISSN 0262-6624. 
  • Pettigrew, Jason (December 2015). "10 Essential Records of 2015". Alternative Press (Cleveland: Alternative Press Magazine, Inc.) (330). ISSN 1065-1667. 
  • Travers, Paul (June 27, 2015). McMahon, James, ed. "Twenty One Pilots: The World at Their Feet". Kerrang! (London: Bauer Media Group) (1574). ISSN 0262-6624. 

External links

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