Twenty One Pilots Unleash ‘Dema’ In New Track “Overcompensate”
As the track begins, we are met with the slow descent of piano gliding for a bar before a heavy synth bass is looped under the track, samples of languages and noises peak through the production, stretching out hype with a climbing synth before bringing in a familiar low pitched voice welcoming us “Back To Trench” with a slamming drum track.
Watch the music video here:
Echoes of past songs from the duo’s fifth album, Trench ring out. An interpolation of Bandito, the eleventh track off the ‘Dema’ inspired concept album, plays on as the hip hop infused instrumental fills my ears. Drummer Josh Dun has a simple sound yet manages to keep a sophisticated depth to the track, the almost bebop feel to the drums showcase the band's influences.
But what the hell is ‘Dema’ and what does any of this lore mean?
To begin, the concept of ‘Dema’, Trench and its contents are extensions of vocalist Tyler Joseph’s struggle with insecurities, faith, suicide and mental health, all integral pieces of twenty one pilots’ thematic sound. He found a sound for his insecurities through Blurryface, a character which is a pitched down mirror of himself which can be heard throughout their last few album cycles.
Through a video posted to YouTube on the 23rd of Feb, Joseph recaps the past 7 years of integrated lore in 4 minutes. The video is spoken through Clancy’s (Joseph’s) eyes, explaining Blurryface is one of the nine rulers or ‘Bishops’ and that Trench’s City, ‘Dema’ is “A circular cement city in the lower portion of an otherwise wild and green continent, Trench”.
Watch the recap here:
The chorus is a simply structured break from the layered flow of rap verses with a crisp distinction to the rest of the song, slow piano chords are structured behind Dun’s incredible beat whilst the droning of synths are hidden beautifully.
The flow during the bridge that Joseph manages to spew out scratches my brain in the best way, the almost trip up of vocals over the melody just works SO well and leaves me wanting more of THAT sound.
Overcompensate welcomes a new and final chapter for the band in the form of the conceptual driven narrative arc that began with Blurryface back in 2015. I couldn’t be more excited for new tracks.
Welcome Back to Trench.
Overcompensate is the debut single of Twenty One Pilots upcoming seventh studio album, “Clancy” dropping May 17th.