Strangely as someone who typically enjoys indie music, the album “Trench” has been my first introduction to Twenty One Pilots and I’m hooked. The theme of the album seems to be one of perseverance when life gets rough, which is a message I find myself in need of especially this semester. Songs like “Neon Gravestones,” and “Leave the City” put me in a place where I could remind myself and what matters, and sometimes it’s okay to try to survive the day.

The songs that particularly resonated with me were “Jumpsuit,” “Morph,” “Smithereens,” and “Leave the City.” Between the relaxing, but fun music and the surprising amount of lyrics to each song, listening to one of these songs help to make a long hard day  a better. As a newcomer, the amount of lyrical composition I found was highly impressive. As very few songs seemed to be composed with nothing but a few repetitive words, with the chorus being repeated when needed and not used to fill space. Yet I would not categorize this album as something you will be rocking out to while cleaning the house. Instead, I found myself wanting to listen to the tracks during late night studying for exams.

Easily, the song I remember the words of the most is “Chlorine.” The song which sounds as it could be about the changing lives of individuals or toxic relationships ends on a bit of a sad note, yet it leaves you pondering the final question. It exemplifies what makes the “Trench” album so intriguing. 

The song that puzzles me the most is “Cheetah” as it seems to be about trying to fix your mistakes, but then randomly adds a cheetah named Jason into the mix. I’m sure I‘m missing some deep meaning to versus, but the song honestly had me laughing every time I heard this random cheetah mentioned. “Neon Gravestones,” “Nico,” and the “Niners and Bandito,” left me a bit puzzled and I have began to think that this is intentional.

Personally, my favorite song of the album is “Smithereens.” Its a sweet song about what Tyler Joseph, the group’s lead vocalist would do for his wife, Jenna. There are several lyrics that acknowledge that the song is about Joseph’s wife, but that he had to write a song for her, which, if I’m being honest, is a pretty cute gesture.

The album is remarkably enjoyable. Perhaps it is less of a rock-out war cry, but more of a calm acknowledgment of the people struggles. If you like Twenty One Pilots I’m sure you will not be disappointed in the Trench album, and if you are new to their music, like I was, I would recommend giving it a listen, especially if you  have a few moments to recollect and remember how to persevere through life.