Morph (song)

A key discovery comes in "Morph" with the identity of Nicolas Bourbaki, the titular character of the song "Nico and the Niners" and one of the main antagonists in the story.

It features horn sections and electric piano, and has an atmosphere that utilizes breakbeats while illustrating restraint as well as drummer Josh Dun's virtuosic percussion.

[2][1] During the interview, Joseph elaborated that he was quite inclined to reach for the instrument while writing the song and every other on Trench, saying how just like when he taught himself how to play the piano, he discovered a sense of inspiration and excitement in the bass guitar.

[1] During an AMA, Joseph and Dun gave answers to questions submitted on reddit, delving into the story of Trench while providing their favorite songs.

[6][4] His full name is Nicolas Bourbaki, which is the collective pseudonym for the mathematicians who invented the notation for the empty set — the Ø symbol used in much of the branding for Twenty One Pilots over the past years.

[6] Similar to previous albums, dark themes remained throughout Trench as Twenty One Pilots continued exploring topics of insecurity, mental health and death.

[10] The track is one of many on Trench that condenses disparate musical elements into a less definable but easily recognizable sound, with much of the album opting for slick, atmospheric production.

[12][13] Their fifth studio album continued vocalist Joseph and drummer Josh Dun's genre-warping hallmark of attacking various styles while showcasing a flair for songwriting.

[14] On Trench, Joseph and Dun again schemed familiar measures from the duo's fourth studio album Blurryface (2015), including reggae textures, ukulele bases, and paranoid raps, alongside new developments.

[15] Though their trademark cross-genre, dub-influenced sounds remained, Twenty One Pilots expanded their range with some new techniques, scattering content such as Joseph's falsetto into "Morph", which contains washes of R&B.

[17][16][10] The ambient track has a slick atmosphere and utilizes rapid, funky breakbeats as well as jolting left turns, while demonstrating both restraint and Dun's virtuosic percussion.

[20] Lyrically, the duo incorporate twenty-first century depression and "Morph" harbors a moral lesson about how being caught in a holding pattern in life — not being dead but not truly feeling alive either — isn't an aspiration.

"[10] Citing it as an album highlight, Billboard's Chris Payne stated the track "deploys rapid-fire breakbeats and jarring left turns that recall the Prodigy and DJ Shadow, suggesting what a virtuoso percussionist Dun has become.

Possible future single 'Morph' sounds like a Khalid song on its chorus, giving the titular line about 'morphing to someone else' a double meaning and considering this group, that's likely intentional.

's Emily Carter cites "Morph" as an example of the scrutiny towards finer details displayed on Trench, sharing how she was drawn in by the song's "dark honesty.

"[23] Jason Pettigrew, for Alternative Press, remarked, "In a little over four minutes, the duo successfully mix '70s lounge jazz (with horn sections and electric piano) and disco-era Bee Gees falsettos with 21st century depression.

[26] Twenty One Pilots provided a live rendition of "Morph" for the fifteenth consecutive sold-out concert at The BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida during their Bandito Tour.