I saw the band Twenty One Pilots for the first time Friday, June 17, 2016 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. I've been a fan of the band consisting of lead singer/rapper/pianist/ukulele player Tyler Joseph and drummer/trumpet player Josh Dun for a couple years. Twenty One Pilots entertained the audience for almost two hours with minimal outfit changes, surprising covers and constant fan engagement. Here are the 11 emotions you should expect to experience at their concert.
1. Content
You're in your seat waiting for the concert to start as you sip your $3 bottle of water. The view is decent and the setlist is amazing, so you're pretty happy and ready for the show.
2. Impatient
Before Tyler and Josh come out, the opening acts perform. It's not that they're bad, but they're not who you're here to see. Eventually the songs start to blur into one, and you really just want them to get off the stage.
3. Anxious
The opening acts are done, and now you just have to wait a few more minutes for the headliners to come onstage. Most artists pick the music that plays between each set. For Twenty One Pilots, that "music" is a trance-like humming sound that goes on and on for 40 minutes. You also drank all your water and have to pee, but you don't dare leave because you can't miss a second of the show once it starts.
4. Adrenaline
Finally it's showtime! The curtain drops, the music starts blaring, and onstage are the boys you've been waiting for. You scream louder than you knew you could, and your body feels like it's on fire with excitement. This is going to be a great night.
5. Pure joy
The band is performing all the songs you like and you're singing (or in my brother's case, screaming) so loud that you know you won't be able to talk tomorrow. It's the best feeling in the world.
6. Lust
It's the part of the show where Josh takes off his shirt and his muscles flex as he drums his heart out. Why, oh why didn't you get closer seats?
7. The Need to Hug
Tyler is sitting on the B-stage singing sad songs with everything he's got. Who hurt him? Again, why didn't you get closer seats so you could run onstage and hug him until he's OK?
8. The Desire to be a Hamster Ball
It wasn't enough for Tyler to stand on people while he sang "Holding On To You." Crowd-surfing has been done before. People want to be surprised. I can honestly say nothing is more surprising than seeing Tyler step into a giant human hamster ball and rolling over the audience on the floor as he finished performing "Guns for Hands." Now that's how you crowd-surf.
9. "Tyler, get down from there!"
Apparently, even being a hamster isn't thrilling enough for Tyler Joseph, because he decided to run from the main stage to the B-stage and scale a tower with no harness on. He finished singing "Car Radio" as Josh looked on from below, supporting his best friend/bandmate.
10. Sadness
After your heart was ripped out during "Goner," the boys perform their final song, "Trees," and it hits you. This is it. The show is ending. You realize this was one of the most entertaining concerts you've ever been to, and you don't want the night to end, but unfortunately it has to.
11. Reincarnated
You will never be the same. Seeing and hearing Twenty One Pilots live has changed your life. All you can do is hope you get tickets to the next tour and do it all over again.