twenty one pilots’ last three albums have all been one of my top releases in their respective years, with Trench even claiming the top spot in 2018. The wide array of musical flavors within their discography has garnered fans of all varieties, and personally, has propelled them to one of my favorite musical groups. Thus, I’m always excited for more music put out by duo Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun. Scaled and Icy was no exception, especially after my positive review of lead single “Shy Away“.
Disclaimer: I am aware of a lot of the lore surrounding DEMA and this album. I grant that it very well could be ‘propaganda’, but that does not change the fact that this is an official studio album and will be reviewed as such – based on the musical efforts displayed.
The album opens with cheery “Good Day“. At least, it sounds cheery with its quirky progressing piano chords. The general sound of the track even makes it seem like it’s straight out of a Toy Story movie. However, the lyrics are a stark contrast with their dark nature. This isn’t a new concept for bands of any genre, and it’s certainly not within twenty one pilots’ catalog, but the juxtaposition is laid on with a heavier hand here. Tyler opened up about the song and how “[it’s] about getting to a place where if I were to lose everything, if I lost my wife and my kid, how would I, in the first week, react to that?” Given how the song develops, the answer is to deny any grief and put on a face of cheer and acceptance. Musically, it is vibrant in sound with fantastic vocal melodies that skate between low-key and grand.
Another single in “Choker” follows, and it was not done any favors in having to come after “Good Day“. “Choker” is formed entirely by a humming sample via Tyler’s voice, a fast-paced drum pattern, and a simple atmospheric synth. The verses and chorus alike are methodically delivered and peaceful. It is easy to get sucked into them, especially given the catchy nature of the chorus. This makes it a nice listen, though the rap verse at the end is ill-placed. It’s ripped straight out of the Regional at Best era of the band, thus, does not feel right here, and is something I could’ve gone without.
“The Outside” actually sounds more stripped back than “Choker” for the majority of it. Despite that, it feels like a fully realized song this time. Tyler leans more into a haunting delivery throughout the track until the song erupts during the bridge. The rap verse here feels more ambitious and modern as the bass takes the forefront of the instrumental. Then, the outro has a similarly styled rapping passage with some low tuned vocals interspersed. It completes the dynamic nature of the song and adds a lot to it.
To round out the pre-release songs comes “Saturday“. The release of it formed the full display that the rabid Skeleton Clique would get until the album dropped. It came with some mixed opinions, and I can see why. The track as a whole serves as a “feel good” song which is something that fans might not appreciate. The lyrical passages across the entire song are pretty great, in my opinion, but I cannot deny that the song feels less ambitious than, say, ‘Good Day’, or some tracks to come. I must mention the phone-in to Tyler’s wife Jenna which is an adorable moment.
Next is the lowest point on the record, for me. “Never Take It” feels so generic that I cannot even equate it to some other generic band, because it takes from so many generic acts at the same time. It feels bland and uninspired, made worse by some horribly compressed guitar throughout. It doesn’t help that the lyrics are fake-woke with plenty of eye-roll moments. The one saving grace of the track is ‘Tyler’ mentioning “…taught myself to play guitar, tearing it up” which validates my mention of the instrument being a new accompaniment during my ‘Shy Away’ review. Moving on.
‘Mulberry Street’ is an oh-so-very-beautiful, and needed, palette cleanser. The upbeat piano focus is reminiscent of ‘Good Day’ which is a boon for the track. The verses are more subdued, but the textures in this song are palpable and the lyrical moments could be the easiest to sing along to so far. The bridge starts with once again channeling the Regional at Best era, albeit for just a handful of moments. Then the down tuned vocal effect combined with some welcomed horns leads perfectly to one last chorus.
“Formidable“is this album’s “Smithereens” (of Trench fame), except this time, about fellow bandmate Josh Dun. The fanbase has been waiting for a song like this, to the point where each previous album has had them scouring track lists looking for any song that could be directed towards the drummer. Finally, it’s here. Despite being originally written on the ukulele, it was recorded on acoustic guitar which is uncommon for the group. Though not an absolute high point on the album, there’s lots of vocal layering scattered throughout the song to great effect. And the lyrics are heartfelt and emotional in delivery leading to another great singalong.
“Bounce Man” was the track I was most excited for after the track list was revealed, since I equated it to my Blurryface favorite of “Message Man“. Sadly, this track did not do much for me. It is not as much of a blight as “Never Take It“, but it gets lost a bit within the quality of some other songs. The theme of the song seems interesting, what with Tyler aiding in the escape of some estranged person, but the sound of the song detracts from me exploring that more.
To say the album ends on a high note is the musical understatement of the year. “No Chances” and “Redecorate” are bombastic, emotional, moody, and simply spectacular. “No Chances” immediately explodes in a combined frenzy of a trap beat and haunting group vocals. Something ticked in Tyler as he fills the song with perfectly delivered rap verses and a beautiful chorus. Perhaps the similarity in sound to Trench leads to the shine in my eye, but it’s an easy favorite, nonetheless.
This all leads to the best closer in the band’s discography, for me. The hard transition to closer “Redecorate” is somehow equal parts soothing and jarring. It shares a trap nature with “No Chances“, but more ethereal. This serves well given the perspective from which Tyler delivers powerfully methodical rap verses. Tyler is on the record stating he “had a friend whose son passed away and they would keep his room the same way that he had left it.” He is essentially singing from the perspective of this son, or at least one who would be in the same situation. Allow him to redecorate his room to display it as a piece of the legacy he’d leave behind. The sentiment is powerful, and the soundscape brought together for the track is excellent – bass driven instrumentals and layered vocals, including the infamous Blurryface persona down tuned ones.
Scaled and Icy is not perfect, and it is not as consistent as Trench, nor reaches the highs of that album as consistently. However, this new effort is an impressive one nonetheless. It’s short on tracks compared to their previous studio albums and easily digestible due to that, as well as the nature of the songs themselves. The sound palette of the album as a whole is one that is equal parts varied and focused, and it makes the singles pop a bit more than listening to them isolated before the album’s release. Clancy is dead, but twenty one pilots are alive and well, and putting out some great bops. Scaled and Icy is available now via Fueled By Ramen, and you can purchase/stream the record here.
7/10