Neon Gravestones

"Neon Gravestones"
Song by Twenty One Pilots
from the album Trench
Released October 5, 2018
Recorded 2017–2018
Length 4:00
Label Fueled by Ramen
Songwriter(s) Tyler Joseph
Producer(s)

"Neon Gravestones" is a song by American musical duo Twenty One Pilots. It is is the seventh track from their fifth studio album, Trench.

Background

The idea of self-harm, depression, suicide... I'd like to believe that there are multiple ways to approach it and talk about it. This angle that "Neon Gravestones" is talking about is one that I haven't heard much of and wanted because I know that's what I'd respond to as a challenge. 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[1]

Tyler Joseph, the lead singer, asked his band member, Josh Dun, for his opinion on the song. He agreed to add the song to the album. In an interview with Alternative Press, Joseph said the song was one that 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 agree in regard to spiritual or political things, which was one of the reasons they got on.[1]

Composition and meaning

The song is a slow-burning piano based rap song in B minor and attacks the media's glorification of suicide. Tyler Joseph writes that it "can treat a loss like it's a win" and that "we give 'em the highest of praise and hang their banner from the ceiling". He then elaborates on the reasons of many suicides, noting that they could boost their fame and gain music streams. Joseph notes that many use suicide as a weapon to gain revenge against those who have hurt them. He ends by pleading for suicide not to be glorified and to pay respects to the elderly who have remained alive.[2] The "neon" represents a fake light, attracting someone towards death.[3]

Critical reception

The song was met with positive reviews by music critics, though most noted that it may attract some controversy for its unconventional take on suicide. Paige Williams, writing for Billboard, wrote that the song may redeem the band from those who saw the band as glamorizing depression in the past.[3] Writing for Rolling Stone, Christopher R. Weingarten says the song "is the most intense look at fame... moody and reflective".[4] Gary Ryan of NME called the song a highlight of the album, an "elegiac, touching broadside against the fetishization of the '27 Club".[5] However, Spencer Kornhaber of The Atlantic was more critical of the song's message, saying "What might that refusal look like? No public funeral, no sharing of memories and songs in the case of untimely demise... the loss of someone who's touched millions of lives with their art is going to trigger a mass response inevitably, whether the cause of death is natural or not. Would denying fans the right to remember be cruel?" and 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."[6] Alternative Press noted that the song was one of the most controversial songs of their career.[1] 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'."[8]

Personnel

  • Tyler Joseph – vocals, piano, bass guitar, keyboards, programming
  • Josh Dun – drums, percussion, backing vocals

Charts

Chart (2018) Peak
position
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[9] 14

References

  1. 1 2 3 Pettigrew, Jason (October 6, 2018). "Choosing life: twenty one pilots avoid the glow of 'Neon Gravestones'". Alternative Press. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  2. ↑ "Neon Gravestones lyrics". Genius. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  3. 1 2 Williams, Paige (October 5, 2018). "Twenty One Pilots' 'Trench': Decoding the New Album's Hidden Meanings". Billboard. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  4. ↑ Weingarten, Christopher R. (October 5, 2018). "Review: Twenty One Pilots Still Stressed, More Cohesive on 'Trench'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
  5. ↑ Ryan, Gary (October 5, 2018). "Twenty One Pilots – 'Trench' review". NME. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  6. ↑ Kornhaber, Spencer (October 5, 2018). "Twenty One Pilots Interrogate the Rock-and-Roll Suicide". The Atlantic. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  7. ↑ Willman, Chris (October 7, 2018). "Album Review: Twenty One Pilots' 'Trench'". Variety. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
  8. ↑ Williams, Martin (October 8, 2018). "Album Review: Have Twenty One Pilots' lost the plot with their controversial take on suicide?". HeraldScotland. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  9. ↑ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. October 15, 2018. Retrieved October 13, 2018.
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