Owl City - Ocean Eyes
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CD Details
Artist: Owl CityEdition: Music CD
Audio: English (Unknown)
CD Release Date: 2009-07-28
Music Label: Republic
Soundtracks:
- Cave In
- The Bird and The Worm
- Hello Seattle
- Umbrella Beach
- The Saltwater Room
- Dental Care
- Meteor Shower
- On The Wing
- Fireflies
- The Tip Of The Iceberg
- Vanilla Twilight
- Tidal Wave
Music reviews of Ocean Eyes
Music Review: Adam Young's innocence and overwhelming optimism is a breath of fresh air in today's music industry
Rating: 5 Stars
The sensation known as Owl City began in the bedroom of Adam Young, who writes and composes music when dealing with insomnia. He release two albums on his own before being picked up by a label for his "official" debut. He has received much praise and much ridicule for his massively popular hit Fireflies, but here we will examine whether that praise/scorn is deserved. Below is a track by track review of the album, or you can skip down to the conclusion at the end of this review.
1. Cave In - 10/10 - A great start to the album, this song can't really be put into a category of being hard or soft, as it is, at times, both. The song starts out with a strong electronica-style beat, then mellows out with synthesizer and strings in the body of the song, then builds up to the driving beat again at the end. Some of the album's most bizarre lyrics can be found here ["Swallow a drop of gravel and blacktop, cuz the road tastes like wintergreen"] but, overall, the song is still optimistic in its own odd way ["When the bombs go off, the sun will still be shining, because I've heard said that every mushroom cloud has a silver lining"].
2. The Bird and the Worm - 9.5/10 - The first love song on the album, this track is more pop-guitar ballad than electronica but still a welcome addition to the CD. Half a point is taken off solely because of some slightly disturbing imagery at the start that may surprise some listeners ["...I'm the worm... if my segments get separated I'll scream, you'll be there"].
3. Hello Seattle - 10/10 - This is the second version of Hello Seattle to be released, the previous being on Owl City's first CD, Of June, and the succeeding release being a remix on the Deluxe Edition of Ocean Eyes. Consisting of many complex layers of beats and sounds, this revamped version of Hello Seattle showcases some of Adam Young's best work. Again, you won't be able to make much sense of the lyrics ["Hello Seattle, I am a mountaineer, on the hills and highlands, I fall asleep in hospital parking lots and awake in your mouth"], but overall this is an expertly produced track that easily becomes addictive.
4. Umbrella Beach - 10/10 - This track fits more into the dance category than electronics; it's an easy one to get your foot tapping to. Contains some interesting implementations of strings that flows quite well with the synthesizer. Another very well done song that will just lift you up from whatever's troubling you.
5. The Saltwater Room - 9/10 - Another song that is seeing a facelift after previously being released, this one originally came from Owl City's second album, Maybe I'm Dreaming. This song features touching lyrics about love ["Our time together is never quite enough, when you and I are alone, I've never felt so at home, what will it take to make or break this hint of love, only time"], yet some fans might get bored with this song, as it is slower than most of the rest of the album. Another aspect avid Owl City fans will notice is that Young changed some of the lyrics in the verses from the first version.
6. Dental Care - 10/10 - I don't care what anybody else says, I think this song has some of the most clever lyrics of any song I've heard. Some have complained about how they don't want to hear a song that's literally about going to the dentist, but if you take a listen, you can't help but be drawn in with Adam Young's happy, bouncy innocence as he chronicles a trip to the dreaded office ["I've been to the dentist a thousand times, so I know the drill, I smooth my hair, sit back in the chair, but somehow I still get the chills"]. There's also some witty double-entendres (not to be confused with a sexual double-entendre) that showcase Young's poetic genius ["When hygienists leave on long vacations, that's when dentists scream and lose their patience/patients"].
7. Meteor Shower - 9/10 - A short song, Meteor Shower has only two full lines of lyric ["I am not my own, for I have been made new, please don't let me go, I desperately need you"], while the rest of the song is light electronics. For what it's worth, the lyrics are strikingly similar to a verse in the Bible.
8. On the Wing - 10/10 - This is the third and final song that was taken from a previous album and revamped. Perhaps one of my favorites, this track reflects on a short romance "[Below the northern lights I spend my coldest nights, alone, awake and thinking of the weekend we were in love"]. The effective combination of strings and synthesizer, along with complex beats, make this song riveting, and Adam's duet with his female vocalist at the end of the song makes one long for this romance that is reflected upon in this song.
9. Fireflies - 10/10 - Undoubtedly the most popular song ever released by Owl City, you probably have already heard this track (if you haven't and just so happened to stumble upon this album, you are in a quickly shrinking minority). You either love it or you hate it, but if you hate it I can't imagine why you're reading this review. This song also has a knack for being surprisingly addictive, with it's lyrics about getting ["...a thousand hugs from ten thousand lightening bugs"] and getting ["misty eyes as they said farewell"]. Almost inexplicably, the song is very uplifting and positive, although there doesn't seem to be a lot of obviously uplifting content in the lyrics, save the ending ["I'd like to make myself believe that planet earth turns slowly, it's hard to say that I'd rather stay awake when I'm asleep because my dreams are bursting at the seams."]
10. Tip of the Iceberg - 10/10 - At this point, the album starts to taper off, not in quality of lyrics or sound, but in intensity and speed. Tip of the Iceberg has the qualities of slower electronica (although it does pick up towards the end) and has the same unpredictability that Owl City is so well known for ["Peer over the edge, can you see me? Rivulets flow from your eyes, paint runs from your mouth like a waterfall, and your lungs crystallize"].
11. Vanilla Twilight - 9.5/10 - This song is a sweet love song in which the lover yearns to be reunited with his lover, but promises he will always remember her even if they don't ["I'll forget the world that I knew, but swear I won't forget you, my voice will reach back to the past and whisper in your ear, Oh, darling I wish you were here"]. Young uses a combination of piano and soft electronics to effectively communicate the emotion involved in the song.
12. Tidal Wave - 8.5/10 - The last song on Ocean Eyes features vocals from Relient K frontrunner Matt Thiessen. While not pushed in any of his songs, Young's Christian faith is most obvious here ["I was given grace and love, I was blind but now I can see, cuz I've found a new hope from above, and courage swept over me"]. The sound of the song is a bit underwhelming for an effective close, but still a fine song.
Some have complained that Owl City's vocals are subpar due to an "overuse" of Auto-Tune. While it is obvious that the program is used in his songs, it is used more as a creative tool than a coverup for bad vocals. In closing, I must say that Young clearly has an enormous amount of talent and genius that he has poured into his work. Thus far, he's maintained an innocence that is virtually impossible to find in the music world. One can only hope that his next release will maintain that positivity.
Description of Ocean Eyes
2009 sophomore release from the Minnesota-based Electro-Rock outfit AKA singer/songwriter Adam Young. While his music continues to win followers all over the world, Adam does indeed hide behind his music, not going by his real name (See: Badly Drawn Boy and Dashboard Confessional); but going by the moniker Owl City. Loaded with amazing loops, catchy pickups, and lyrics that soothe the mind and touch the heart, Adam Young has once again created a lush listening experience. Owl City's trademark desire to escape in dreams, oceans and sky abound on songs such as 'Cave In' and 'Umbrella Beach.' With glorious vocal harmonies and touching odes to love lost, Adam has dug more deeply on Ocean Eyes, lyrically and musically, than ever.Alternative Rock CDs
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