twenty one pilots: "We're Both Deeply Passionate About What We Do…"

Few bands are set to have a 2019 as colossal as twenty one pilots (and, given their unstoppable rise and never-ending tours since the release of 2015's Blurryface, that's no mean feat).

From headlining Reading & Leeds festivals for the first time ever in August, to bringing their stunning Bandito world tour to the UK in March, Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun will be building on the success of last year's Trench album with a string of career-defining shows. And, as they tell Kerrang!, the nerves they feel ahead of such a momentous period in their career are simply a sign that they care…

When you came to the UK last September for a one-off comeback show at London’s O2 Academy Brixton, was that a warm-up for the rest of the Bandito world tour?
Tyler: “Warm-up is the perfect way of putting it. We had some new songs out at the time, and I know a lot of people thought that we were going to play the whole new record [Trench], but we’ve never felt comfortable playing new songs live. It never feels more about just us than when we’re playing a new song that you’ve never heard before. And a twenty one pilots show shouldn’t feel like that. It shouldn’t feel like just us onstage. You remove four-fifths of the entire point of playing a show by playing a brand-new song. Every big show we’ve ever played has been with a record that’s been out for a while, because we didn’t get to that level until well after that record had been released.”

What have your nerve levels been like on the Bandito tour so far? Are they anything like they were on that Brixton show?
Josh: “Yeah (laughs). It’s good, though! I like the feeling, ultimately, because it lets me know that we’re both still deeply passionate about what we do, and we enjoy it, and we want it to be right. Not feeling that is scary.”
Tyler: “Any time you’re doing something new, you can’t rely on muscle memory. You have to be so present inside of your own body. It’s hard to explain, but when you’re performing in front of that many people, it’s so easy to extend yourself out, and be like, ‘Look at all them!’ and then you lose track of what you’re doing. You have to continue to collect yourself. But if you’re outwardly showing that you’re collecting yourself, it really affects your performance, so you have to find this perfect balance between being present in the moment, and being prepared. And it’s really hard to find that balance – and the first show back is the ultimate, ‘Here we go, let’s see if we can find that balance.’ Eventually you find it.”

Catch twenty one pilots live at the following dates this year:

January

30 Palace of Sports – Kiev, Ukraine

February

2 VTB Arena – Moscow, Russia
4 Ice Palace – St. Petersburg, Russia
6 Ice Hall – Helsinki, Finland
8 Ericsson Globe Arena – Stockholm, Sweden
9 Telenor Arena – Oslo, Norway
11 Royal Arena – Copenhagen, Denmark
12 Barclaycard Arena – Hamburg, Germany
14 Mercedes-Benz Arena – Berlin, Germany
15 Atlas Arena – Lodz, Poland
16 The O2 Arena – Prague, Czech Republic
17 Wiener Stadthalle – Vienna, Austria
21 Unipol Arena – Bologna, Italy
23 Hallenstadion Zurich – Zurich, Switzerland
24 Hanns-Martin-Schleyerhalle – Stuttgart, Germany
25 Lanxess Arena – Cologne, Germany
27 Genting Arena – Birmingham, United Kingdom

March

1 3Arena – Dublin, Ireland
2 SSE Arena Belfast – Belfast, UK
4 The SSE Hydro Arena – Glasgow, UK
5 Manchester Arena – Manchester, UK
7 The SSE Arena, Wembley – London, UK
8 The SSE Arena, Wembley – London, UK
9 The SSE Arena, Wembley – London, UK
11 Accorhotels Arena – Paris, France
12 Ziggo Dome – Amsterdam, Netherlands
13 Palais 12 – Brussels, Belgium
15 Bizkaia Arena (BEC!) – Bilbao, Spain
16 WiZink Center – Madrid, Spain
17 Altice Arena – Lisbon, Portugal

And see them headline Reading & Leeds – along with this lot…