Neon Gravestones

"Neon Gravestones" is a song by the American musical duo Twenty One Pilots. It is the seventh track from their fifth studio album, Trench (2018). Tyler Joseph, the frontman of the band, wrote the song and produced it with Paul Meany. It is a hip hop piano ballad which deals with the glorification of suicide by the media.

"Neon Gravestones"
Song by Twenty One Pilots
from the album Trench
ReleasedOctober 5, 2018
StudioTyler Joseph's home studio (Columbus, Ohio)
GenreHip hop
Length4:00
LabelFueled by Ramen
Songwriter(s)Tyler Joseph
Producer(s)

Upon the album's release, "Neon Gravestones" attracted moderate media attention for its potentially controversial take on suicide. Nevertheless, the song received generally positive reviews from music critics. It is part of the set list for the band's Bandito Tour (2018–2019), and Joseph also performed a piano version of the song for BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge on November 2, 2018.[1][2]

Background
Neon advertising

The song was written and recorded by Tyler Joseph in his basement and produced with the help of Paul Meany of alternative rock band Mutemath.[3] Apart from the band's drummer Josh Dun, Joseph, and Meany, no one, including friends and family, was allowed to be present during the songwriting process; this was in order to not influence the song's direction.[4] Some publications, including Billboard, have interpreted the "neon", which is often used for advertising, as a fake light, attracting someone towards death.[5][6] Several music journalists have described the ending as directly linked to Trench's penultimate track, "Legend", which pays homage to Joseph's late grandfather, Robert, who appeared on the album cover of the band's first major label album, Vessel (2013).[7][8][9]

I think at some point, "We hear you and we are here for you and we understand you" ...There's a point where that doesn't help. And what's the opposite of that? That's a challenge to step up and defeat something. To win.

–Tyler Joseph, speaking to Alternative Press[10]

In an October 2018 interview with Kerrang!, Joseph revealed that he was uneasy about the placement of the song in the middle of the Trench, having heard concerns from outside opinions that it affected the flow of the album. He decided to keep the song in its place, believing it to be "the heart of Trench". Joseph was also worried about the sensitivity of the track, as was Dun, but both agreed to keep the song on the album.[11] Executives at Atlantic Records were also "extremely concerned" by the song, with Joseph recalling in an interview that they described it as a "giant landmine in the middle of the record" and were concerned that if its message were misinterpreted it could potentially be career-ending for the band.[12]

Some publications noted that the song could have been written in response to various celebrity suicides, such as those of Chester Bennington and Scott Hutchison, and the popularity of the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why.[13][9] Joseph also explained that the song was "a reaction to what was happening in our culture", but added that he was still proud of "our culture," although his pride in it had been declining. He nonetheless "felt inclined to bring up a new perspective – a perspective that comes off a bit more aggressive and more of a challenge".[11] In another interview, Joseph said that he feared it would be bordering on disrespect if he answered a fan's question on whether one particular death had caused him to write the song.[14]

Composition and lyrics

"Neon Gravestones" is forlorn, slow-burning hip hop piano ballad that runs for a duration of four minutes.[8][15][16] According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Alfred Publishing, it is written in the time signature of common time, with a fast tempo of 150 beats per minute.[16] "Neon Gravestones" is composed in the key of B minor. The song has a basic sequence of Bm–F♯m7–A6–Esus2–Gmaj13–G6–Gmaj7 during the introduction, changes to Bm–F♯5–Asus2–EG–G6–G–G6 in the verses and chorus and follows A–Bm–Em6/G–D at the bridge, interludes and coda as its chord progression.[16] The musical composition is built on swirling piano and jittery calibrated drums.[13] A somber 6
8 piano riff runs throughout atop electronic percussion, steadily picking up pace over time.[7] Joseph alternates between singing and spoken word rapping, while pitching his voice to sound "especially fragile, hoarse, and tentative."[13]

Lyrically, "Neon Gravestones" attacks the media's glorification of suicide.[7] Joseph challenges pop culture at large for not taking the mental health of troubled musicians more seriously while reckoning with the aftermath of numerous celebrity musicians who have taken their own lives.[9][8] His balladic lyrics address the suicide crisis as well as other forms of untimely death.[13] The sensitive song harbors plainly introspective lyrics where Joesph frankly discusses suicide, speaking with first-person singular pronouns rather than in royal "we".[9] Joseph argues there lies a culture of romanticizing celebrity suicides and grapples with the idea that perhaps some artists who choose to leave the world do so with their legacy in mind.[7] These cultural tendencies communicate a message that "an earlier grave is an optional way."[13] Tyler Joseph closes the song by pleading for suicide not to be glorified and to suggests paying respects to the elderly who have remained alive.[17]

During his songs, Joseph often engages audiences in a non-literal approach. However, "Neon Gravestones" is one of the tracks on Trench where he abandon characters and concept and instead directly states what he means.[7] Joseph explained that the lyrics were "black and white" rather than metaphorical like most of the band's songs,[18] as he didn't want "beautiful, pretty metaphors" distracting the listener from "the importance of the topic".[19] He also described the track as "a view into the deeper reasons of what's going on in Dema that feels like I have to leave".[11] Joseph later told Alternative Press that the song was one that you have to live with for a while, one you have to "give oxygen and let it breathe". Dun added that the two of them generally agreed in regard to spiritual or political subjects, which was one of the reasons why they made the track.[10]

Critical reception

The song was met with positive reviews from music critics, though most noted that it may attract some controversy for its unconventional take on suicide. Billboard journalist Paige Williams wrote that the song may redeem the band from those who saw them as glamorizing depression in the past.[5] Christopher R. Weingarten of Rolling Stone said the song "is the most intense look at fame... moody and reflective".[20] NME's Gary Ryan called the song a highlight of the album, an "elegiac, touching broadside against the fetishization of the '27 Club".[21] Stereogum's Chris DeVille called the song "an unusual message in modern pop music, but unsurprising for a group that put their grandfathers on the cover of their major-label debut."[8] Joshua Copperman, writing for PopMatters, deemed the song "the most compelling track" off Trench, but called its ending "too pat" compared to the rest of the song.[9] Jason Pettigrew of Alternative Press placed it at number 29 on his ranking of all of the band's songs as of September 2019, hailing the song as "a brave statement in a troubling time".[22]

Spencer Kornhaber of The Atlantic was more critical of "Neon Gravestones" regarding its message, arguing that to "deny" fans the right to pay homage to any deceased artist upon their death may be too cruel considering the impact of and affection attached to the artist's work. He continued, writing that "the song is less a coherent argument than a series of questions—tough ones about the departed, and tougher ones for those left behind".[13] Pettigrew noted in an interview with the band that the song was one of the most controversial of their career.[10] Calling it an "anti-suicide-glorifying anthem," Chris Willman of Variety said the song may be debated "not just by fans but some of the mental health specialists who track pop culture's statements on this stuff in the months to come".[7] Martin Williams of The Herald predicted that the song would "undoubtedly received a kneejerk response of insensitivity to victims with lines like: 'I'm not disrespecting what was left behind / just pleading that it does not get glorified'".[17]

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Trench and Twenty One Pilots' official YouTube channel.[3][23]

Recording and management

Twenty One Pilots

Additional personnel

Charts
Chart (2018) Peak
position
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[24] 14
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[25] 13
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References
  1. "Here's The Set List From The First Night Of twenty one pilots' Bandito Tour — Kerrang!". Kerrang!. Archived from the original on October 17, 2018. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  2. "Twenty One Pilots' Tyler Joseph Goes It Alone for Piano-Driven BBC Live Lounge Performance: Watch". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 3, 2018. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  3. Trench (Media notes). Twenty One Pilots. Fueled by Ramen. 2018.CS1 maint: others (link)
  4. "Twenty One Pilots - Part two of our guided tour of Trench with Tyler and Josh - Kerrang!". PressReader. Archived from the original on December 21, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
  5. Williams, Paige (October 5, 2018). "Twenty One Pilots' 'Trench': Decoding the New Album's Hidden Meanings". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 6, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  6. Gallagher, Addison (October 20, 2018). "Review: A Track-by-Track Analysis of Twenty One Pilots' 'Trench'". Arts + Culture. Archived from the original on December 22, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
  7. Willman, Chris (October 7, 2018). "Album Review: Twenty One Pilots' 'Trench'". Variety. Archived from the original on October 7, 2018. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
  8. "Twenty One Pilots May Not Be For You (Because They're For Everyone)". Stereogum. October 11, 2018. Archived from the original on October 11, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
  9. Copperman, Joshua (October 12, 2018). "Twenty One Pilots Get Sensitive on 'Trench'". PopMatters. Archived from the original on December 23, 2018. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
  10. Pettigrew, Jason (October 6, 2018). "Choosing life: twenty one pilots avoid the glow of 'Neon Gravestones'". Alternative Press. Archived from the original on October 8, 2018. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  11. Carter, Emily. "Twenty One Pilots: They're back! And their journey to create Trench is a story that could only come form them... - Kerrang!". Kerrang!. Archived from the original on December 19, 2018. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  12. Dowd, Rachael (May 4, 2020). "You still haven't discovered everything twenty one pilots hid in Dema". Alternative Press. Archived from the original on May 5, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  13. Kornhaber, Spencer (October 5, 2018). "Twenty One Pilots Interrogate the Rock-and-Roll Suicide". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on October 6, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  14. Twenty One Pilots Press Conference at Wells Fargo Center, October 28, 2018. Radio 104.5. YouTube. 1 November 2018. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
  15. Kennedy, Mark (October 5, 2018). "Review: Twenty One Pilots score again with another genre-bending album, 'Trench'". USA Today. Archived from the original on October 6, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
  16. Joseph, Tyler. "Twenty One Pilots 'Neon Gravestones' Sheet Music in B Minor - Download & Print". Musicnotes.com. Retrieved February 8, 2019.
  17. Williams, Martin (October 8, 2018). "Album Review: Have Twenty One Pilots' lost the plot with their controversial take on suicide?". HeraldScotland. Archived from the original on October 8, 2018. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  18. "twenty one pilots Explain Why They Won't Add More Band Members Any Time Soon". Kerrang!. November 9, 2018. Archived from the original on December 19, 2018. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
  19. Shutler, Ali (April 12, 2019). ""Why not dream big?" - Twenty One Pilots are shaking things up". Dork Magazine. Archived from the original on April 13, 2019. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
  20. Weingarten, Christopher R. (October 5, 2018). "Review: Twenty One Pilots Still Stressed, More Cohesive on 'Trench'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 6, 2018. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
  21. Ryan, Gary (October 5, 2018). "Twenty One Pilots – 'Trench' review". NME. Archived from the original on October 15, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  22. Pettigrew, Jason (September 26, 2019). "twenty one pilots songs ranked in all of their pop majesty". Alternative Press. Archived from the original on September 30, 2019. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
  23. Neon Gravestones. Twenty One Pilots. YouTube. 4 October 2018. Archived from the original on 8 November 2019. Retrieved December 22, 2018.
  24. "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. October 15, 2018. Archived from the original on October 12, 2018. Retrieved October 13, 2018.
  25. "Twenty One Pilots Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
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