Music Video Review: 'Lane Boy' by Twenty One Pilots

Josh Dun and Tyler Joseph - TØP 2015

Twenty One Pilots (TØP) are a two piece musical duo from Columbus, Ohio. The band consists of Tyler Joseph (Singer and piano, keyboards, ukulele, keytar, synthesizer) and Josh Dun (Drums).

Lane Boy:

Twenty One Pilots released the music video for 'Lane Boy' on 20th July 2015. The song is from their latest album Blurryface which was released on 17th May 2015.

The thing that really captures me in this video is the eye contact that Tyler makes with the camera, it makes the viewer feel much more connected and involved with the song and video, which is a large part of the duos idea - to make sure that their fans are always included in anything that they do because without them, they wouldn't be where they are today.

"They say stay in your lane boy, lane boy, but we go where we want to" - The song is all about how they are breaking the mould of what bands are perceived to be. They don't stick to a specific genre. Some of their songs would be classed as rap, like Stressed Out, others as punk-rock like Tear In My Heart and others... well I don't really know what genre a song with a ukulele and a screaming  vocalist would come under?

As Rock Sound Magazine put it, when they were featured on the cover, they are "Leaders Of The New World Order" and this was because their style is so much different to anything ever seen, but with a large and ever-growing following, they are set to become huge all over the world.

The two figures in the white boiler suits and gas masks set the scene of isolation. Generally, when someone wears one of these outfits, it is due to some sort of chemical outbreak or war scenario. However, Tyler quite clearly isn't submitting to this, and is not wearing the clothing that the others are. This shows how the band are breaking out of what is forced upon most bands and artists in the industry and that is always following the same/similar routes in their music and image. Twenty One Pilots stand out because they don't conform to this, they do what they feel like and that is all of their material is so different and shows how they are not staying in their lane.

The two figures mostly move in synchronised patterns, and this is to perhaps show how the rest of the artists in the music world are very similar to each other and produce material that is very alike. They are totally covered up and therefore completely unknown to the outside world, which depicts the idea that most artists hide under the image that has been crafted for them. Whereas, Tyler is exposed for all to see, plain and simply because that is the idea that they wanted to create for themselves - they don't have any specific image, they are just themselves.

However, even though the song is about not conforming to what society believes we should act like, how we should dress etc. Tyler still seems to stay in the same 'lane' throughout the video in that, the two white figures stand either side of him, just behind, and he is in front. He never strays from his line. So, maybe, though they try not to be conventional in their approach to music, there will always be certain things that other people control for them, so even if they wanted to get out of their metaphorical lane, it will not always be possible.

The scene later in the video where they are on stage in front of a large crowd again reiterates that point that they try to include their fans in all aspects of their work. (This is also shown in their video for 'Car Radio' from the album Vessel (2013) where Tyler is amidst the crowd before being delivered back onto the stage).

It's safe to say that, whilst 'Lane Boy' may not be the biggest hit of 2015 (far from it), it is a song with a powerful and influential message that is; it is ok to not conform to the stereotypes set out by society, because even though sometimes you may not be able to escape from your lane, there will always be a way of making sure that your thoughts and ideas come from you and are not (wholly) tainted by someone else.

Rating: 3.5/5

Watch the video to 'Lane Boy' here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywvRgGAd2XI


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