Before the yellow tape of Trench or the face paint of Blurryface, there was just a kid in a basement in Columbus, Ohio. That kid was Tyler Joseph. Long before he was selling out arenas and winning Grammys, he recorded a project that has become the holy grail for a specific subset of the internet. We're talking about the No Phun Intended album, a raw, lo-fi collection of songs that feels less like a professional debut and more like a leaked audio diary.
Honestly, calling it an "album" feels like a stretch to some, while to others, it's the most essential piece of the Twenty One Pilots lore.
It wasn't released on a major label. You won't find it on Spotify or Apple Music—at least not officially. It exists in the digital ether of YouTube re-uploads and SoundCloud rips. Yet, for the "Skeleton Clique," these tracks are foundational. They contain the DNA of every major hit Joseph would later write. If you’ve ever wondered where the angst, the theological wrestling, and the genre-blending of Twenty One Pilots started, this is the ground zero.
What is the No Phun Intended album exactly?
It's 2007. Tyler Joseph is a senior in high school. While most kids are worrying about prom or football games, Tyler is messing around with a keyboard and a basic recording setup in his parents' basement. This is the origin of the No Phun Intended album. It’s important to realize this wasn't a band effort. Josh Dun wasn't in the picture yet. This was a solo project, a cathartic exercise for a teenager trying to make sense of his brain.
The tracklist is a bit of a moving target.
Because it was never "officially" polished for a commercial release, different versions float around online. Most fans agree there are about 19 tracks, though some "deluxe" fan versions cobble together even more rarities from that era. You’ve got songs like "Save," "Tonight," and "Taken by Sleep." These aren't just demos; they are full-length windows into a very specific kind of Midwestern existentialism.
The sound is... well, it’s rough. You can hear the limitations of the equipment. The piano is often front and center, but it’s the lyrics that carry the weight. If you listen to "Save," you hear a desperation that is almost uncomfortable. It’s a literal cry for help. It’s raw. It’s unedited. It’s exactly what music sounds like before a marketing team gets a hold of it.
The transition from solo work to Twenty One Pilots
A lot of people ask if this counts as the first Twenty One Pilots record. Technically, no. But practically? Absolutely.
Several songs from the No Phun Intended album eventually found their way into the band's official discography in one form or another. The most famous example is "Trees." If you’ve ever been to a Twenty One Pilots show, you know "Trees" is the sacred closing ritual. Every single concert ends with Tyler and Josh on platforms in the crowd, drumming amidst a sea of confetti. But "Trees" started right here, on this obscure solo project. The version on No Phun Intended is much slower, more electronic, and admittedly a bit clunkier than the Regional at Best or Vessel versions, but the heart of the song is identical.
Then there’s "Goner." The haunting closing track of the massive Blurryface album actually has its roots in this era. Even "Whisper," another track from these sessions, shares thematic connective tissue with the band’s later explorations of silence and noise.
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The Mystery of "Dollhouse" and the Rare Tracks
When you start digging into the No Phun Intended album, you hit some weird corners. Take the song "Dollhouse." For years, fans debated its existence or where it fit. It’s these kinds of tracks that keep the fandom alive. They aren't just listening to music; they’re playing musical archaeologists.
Some tracks are surprisingly upbeat, or at least they try to be. "Falling Too" has a bit more of a pop-rock edge compared to the moody atmosphere of "Blasphemy." Speaking of "Blasphemy," that song is a prime example of Tyler’s early "rap-sing" style. You can hear him figuring out his flow. He’s not quite the confident rapper we hear on Levitate, but the rhythmic delivery is there. It’s a prototype.
The lyrics in "Blasphemy" also introduce a recurring theme: the struggle with faith. Tyler has never shied away from his religious upbringing, but he’s also never been a "Contemporary Christian Music" artist. He’s always been more interested in the doubt. In the No Phun Intended album, that doubt is on full display. He’s arguing with God, asking questions, and demanding answers that don’t seem to be coming.
Why you can't find it on streaming services
This is the big question. Why isn't this on Spotify? If the fans love it so much, why not monetize it?
Basically, it comes down to copyright and quality. Since Tyler recorded this as a teenager, he likely used samples or loops that weren't cleared for commercial use. Beyond that, artists often have a complicated relationship with their earliest work. Think about your old high school journals. Would you want them published by Penguin Random House? Probably not. Tyler has hinted in interviews that he views his early stuff as a learning process. It’s "the basement tapes."
There is also the "Regional at Best" factor. For those who don't know, Twenty One Pilots’ second indie album, Regional at Best, was essentially scrubbed from the internet when they signed with Fueled by Ramen. The label wanted to push Vessel, which re-recorded many of the same songs. If the label went that far to hide an official indie release, they certainly aren't going to go out of their way to put a basement solo project on the charts.
But the internet is forever.
The No Phun Intended album lives on through the "Clique" sharing files. It’s passed around like a secret handshake. Being a fan who has heard No Phun Intended is a badge of honor. It means you’ve done the homework. You’ve gone back to the beginning.
The emotional weight of "Save" and "Taken by Sleep"
If we’re being honest, some of these songs are a tough listen. Not because they’re bad, but because they’re heavy.
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"Save" is a six-minute-long plea. It’s repetitive, it’s loud, and it’s visceral. When Tyler screams "Start a fire!" toward the end, it’s not for show. It feels like a genuine breakdown. This is why the No Phun Intended album resonates so deeply with the younger demographic of the fanbase. It validates the big, messy emotions that come with being a person.
"Taken by Sleep" deals with the loss of a friend and the guilt associated with it. It’s a theme Tyler would revisit later in "Neon Gravestones," but here, it’s less of a social commentary and more of a personal wound. He’s talking about specific memories, a specific phone call, a specific grief.
These aren't songs written for the radio. They were written for the person writing them.
How to listen to No Phun Intended today
If you’re looking to dive in, don't go to the official stores. You have to be a bit more "old school" about it.
- YouTube: This is the easiest way. Several fan accounts have uploaded the full album as a single video or a playlist. Look for the ones with the highest view counts, as they usually have the best audio quality.
- SoundCloud: Many of the tracks are uploaded there by fans.
- Internet Archive: Occasionally, high-quality FLAC or MP3 files are archived here.
Just a heads up: the cover art you see—the one with the grainy photo of a car or the one with Tyler sitting on a floor—is mostly fan-made. Since it wasn't a commercial release, there was never a "final" official album cover in the way we think of them today.
Technical breakdown: The "Basement" sound
Let’s talk about the production. It’s lo-fi, but not in the trendy "Lo-fi beats to study to" way. It’s lo-fi because of necessity.
The drums are mostly programmed. They have that distinct, slightly "cheap" MIDI sound that was common in mid-2000s home recording. But Tyler’s use of the piano is where the talent shines. He’s a self-taught player, and his style is very percussive. He doesn't just play chords; he hits the keys. That energy translates even through a basic microphone.
The vocal layering is also interesting. You can hear him experimenting with harmonies and double-tracking his voice to hide some of the technical imperfections. It creates this "wall of Tylers" effect that became a staple of the Twenty One Pilots sound later on.
What most people get wrong about this album
A common misconception is that this was a "failed" project. People see that it’s not on Spotify and assume it was rejected. In reality, it was never really sent anywhere. It was a collection of songs shared among friends and family. It was a demo reel for a career that hadn't even started yet.
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Another mistake is thinking Josh Dun is on these tracks. Josh didn't meet Tyler until around 2011, years after these songs were put to bed. Any drums you hear are either Tyler’s programming or potentially some live percussion he did himself.
The lasting legacy of No Phun Intended
So, why does an unreleased, poorly recorded album from 2007 still matter in 2026?
Because it proves authenticity.
In an era where every artist's "origin story" feels manufactured by a PR firm, the No Phun Intended album is undeniable proof that Tyler Joseph has been saying the same thing for nearly twenty years. He’s been struggling with the same "kitchen sink" demons since he was eighteen.
It gives the later, more polished albums more weight. When you hear the high-production version of "Trees" at the end of a sold-out show, knowing it started as a lonely experiment in a Columbus basement makes the moment feel earned. It’s not just a song; it’s a timeline.
For the new fan, this album is a treasure map. For the old fan, it’s a reminder of where they came from. It’s the rawest form of the band’s ethos: "Create this world to feel like I'm in control."
How to explore the No Phun Intended era safely
If you want to experience this part of music history without getting lost in the weeds, here is how to do it right:
- Start with "Save" and "Blasphemy." These are the two pillars of the project. They give you the best sense of the emotional and musical range Tyler was working with at the time.
- Compare "Trees (No Phun Intended version)" to the "Vessel" version. It’s a fascinating lesson in song evolution. Notice how the lyrics stayed the same but the "soul" of the song grew.
- Read the lyrics while listening. Because the audio quality can be fuzzy, having the lyrics up helps you catch the wordplay and the internal rhymes that Tyler is known for.
- Check out "Clear" or "Be Concerned" from the Regional at Best era afterward. It bridges the gap between the solo basement tapes and the band's eventual rise to fame.
Don't expect a masterpiece. Expect a person. The No Phun Intended album isn't about perfection; it’s about the start of a conversation that hasn't stopped since.