The pressure and hopeful expectations placed upon Adam Young’s shoulders add up to no small weight. While the coy, shy and witty artist has delivered a generous portion of the kind of bright and infectious joy that pleasantly surprised a pop rock world with Ocean Eyes in ’09, these tunes carry a slightly more “serious” piano-rock (or dance pop) based sonic pallet. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but the electronic quirkiness was part of Owl City’s charm and it’s been partly smoothed over with production here. This collection of tunes comes closer to the “magic” of Ocean Eyes than last year’s All Things Bright and Beautiful, so maybe we could call this “cautious optimism” as opposed to crazy joy.
Features
In a World of Hurt
...a kind word goes a long way. "When it comes to writing and music, these are the gifts God has given me and that’s what I want to use to further the Kingdom and return those things back to God."
Full Feature More from Earth Groans
Droning On
The world came to a halt in 2020, but London-based Drones trudged on, giving a voice to the hurt that circulates with (or without) a pandemic: "You shouldn’t underestimate the power of writing things down or literally speaking them out loud, which I’m learning. I’m glad I made these songs, no matter how personal they are."
Full Feature More from Drones
Changing Focus
When Weathered wrote their debut album, 'Stranger Here,' it was an introspective take on life as they knew it. The appropriate way to follow it up? Turn the mirror around and tell the stories of those around you.
Full Feature More from Weathered
The Space for Rebirth
On Age of the Abstract's new EP, 'Rebirth,' the duo explores what a new sound looks like apart from the day-job in Canidria. Here, contributing writer Andrew Voigt talks with Julio Arias about influence, vision, and how writing in the wake of his father's death propelled the band forward.
Full Feature More from Age of the Abstract
