{"id":733,"date":"2012-09-18T19:00:19","date_gmt":"2012-09-18T19:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/216.71.127.204\/wordpress\/?p=733"},"modified":"2015-10-13T16:11:49","modified_gmt":"2015-10-13T16:11:49","slug":"owl-city-house-of-blues-houston-tx","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/2012\/09\/18\/owl-city-house-of-blues-houston-tx\/","title":{"rendered":"Owl City – House of Blues – Houston, TX"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n
Written by Robert Johnson <\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sep 18, 2012 at 07:00 PM<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\"Image\"Have you ever listened to a band you really enjoyed, yet thought there was no way that band could produce a compelling live show?\u00a0 For me, it isn’t meant as a slight to the band.\u00a0 Some music simply isn’t conducive to the live setting.\u00a0 There’s a reason Enya doesn’t play live.\u00a0 The art of her music is not only in the composition, but also in the production and engineering.\u00a0 Some artists ignore better judgement, and go out on tour doing glorified karaoke.\u00a0 For many electronic acts, it can be a difficult and daunting task to appropriately translate a primarily electronic medium to the live setting.\u00a0 All too often, they will travel with a laptop and a microphone, playing tracks and singing over them.\u00a0 For Owl City, I wasn’t sure what to expect.\u00a0 Would it be a traditional live set, glorified karaoke, or something else entirely?<\/p>\n

Let me preface – I find the work of Adam Young to be brilliant.\u00a0 There is a unique talent in producing an album’s worth of catchy, fun music.\u00a0 Critics of his music blast Young\u2019s songs for lack of lyrical depth.\u00a0 Those critics don\u2019t \u201cget it.\u201d\u00a0 There\u2019s something to be said for a musician who\u00a0 consistently produces entertaining, likeable songs.\u00a0 Those critics need to take a step back and look at the big picture.\u00a0 The music of Owl City is about a lot more than lyrical content and catchy hooks.\u00a0 It\u2019s about an energy.\u00a0 An attitude.\u00a0 Owl City\u2019s performance at House of Blues – Houston embodied that energy and attitude.<\/p>\n

At 8:30PM, the house lights went down and the pulsating, airy electronics of \u201cDreams and Disasters\u201d permeated the venue.\u00a0 As the minutes passed and the anticipation continued to build, Young and company strolled onto the stage to assume their instruments.\u00a0 Joined by a drummer, an additional guitarist, a multi-instrumentalist (primarily keyboards and various guitars), and a pianist \/ backing vocalist, it was clear that Young had assembled the talent to produce a unique live set.\u00a0 This was not going to be karaoke.\u00a0 In fact, quite the opposite.\u00a0 Textured guitars and heavy drumming took \u201cDreams and Disasters\u201d through a live metamorphosis.\u00a0 This wasn’t karaoke.\u00a0 It wasn’t even a basic live version of the studio track.\u00a0 Right out of the gate, Owl City was changing the dynamic and making it work.<\/p>\n

On the third song, \u201cCave In,\u201d the differences between the studio and live sound were really apparent.\u00a0 Relying on clever drum licks and a melodic blend of guitars, the song took on a completely new life.\u00a0 Midway through the song, the band broke out in a jam session.\u00a0 By the time they returned to the verse, the crowd was going nuts.<\/p>\n

On \u201cMeteor Shower,\u201d things really got interesting.\u00a0 \u201cMeteor Shower\u201d is a short, down-tempo, piano and string-laden masterpiece from the album Ocean Eyes.\u00a0 But how would it translate to the live environment?\u00a0 Beautifully. Jasper Nephew performed his guitar parts with the assistance of a violin bow and various effects, Breanne Duren flowed wonderfully through the electronic landscape, and drummer Steve Goold picked his spots carefully, delicately underscoring the various moods throughout the duration of the song.\u00a0\u00a0 Live nuances like these could be found throughout the entire set, adding a layer that is both visually stimulating and sonically appealing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m Coming After You\u201d is the kind of song that critics jump all over.\u00a0 Lyrically, it is simply silly.\u00a0 At the same time, if you listen to it once, it will be in your head for a lifetime.\u00a0 It is the one of those songs that you can hate and love at the same time.\u00a0 It seems that Young recognizes this, as he incorporated police sirens and flashing lights into the live performance, adding a skillful bit of drama and humor to the song.<\/p>\n

\"Image\"\u201cFireflies\u201d got the reception most would likely expect.\u00a0 By far the bands biggest hit, the crowd went absolutely nuts for the song.\u00a0 By this point, we were back by the sound booth, enjoying the live act without constant bumping or movement.\u00a0 Thanks to this positioning, I saw a 50-something couple (not there with kids of their own) bounce around and sing along with every word of the song.\u00a0 For better or worse, Owl City is perceived as a \u201cteen\u201d band.\u00a0 This simply isn\u2019t the case.\u00a0 Although there were plenty of teenagers in attendance, there was no single representative age of the entire crowd.\u00a0 It is rare to find a band that can appeal to multiple generations so seamlessly.\u00a0 Coldplay has it mastered.\u00a0 Although Owl City isn\u2019t quite to that level, \u201cFireflies\u201d is the perfect example of a song that can appeal to the broad audience.<\/p>\n

For the encore, Owl City opened with the latest hit, \u201cGood Time.\u201d\u00a0 On the album, Adam Young splits vocal duties with Carly Rae Jepsen.\u00a0 Since Jepsen is a mega-star in her own right, she was not in attendance to join Young on stage.\u00a0 Instead, we were treated to a duet with Breanne Duren.\u00a0 Duren is no stranger to duets with Young, singing with him on studio tracks for \u201cThe Saltwater Room,\u201d \u201cHoney and the Bee,\u201d \u201cOn the Wing,\u201d and \u201cAir Traffic.\u201d\u00a0 Duren has a soft, but strong voice.\u00a0 Personally, I found her performance with Young to be even better than the one with Jepsen.\u00a0 Although Jepsen is the more talented vocalist, I believe that Duren\u2019s voice is better suited for the song.<\/p>\n

The band closed the set with \u201cGold.\u201d\u00a0 As a composition, it stands out as one of the band\u2019s best tracks.\u00a0 The song\u2019s bridge and hook are solid, but it is the positive, uplifting nature of the song that suits it so perfectly for the end of a set.<\/p>\n

I entered the House of Blues uncertain of what to expect.\u00a0 Listening to the Owl City albums, I simply couldn\u2019t imagine a live performance.\u00a0 What I experienced was so much more than anything I could have anticipated anyway.\u00a0 Adam Young has already built himself into a star.\u00a0 As he continues to develop his craft and broaden the appeal for his music, the sky is the limit.<\/p>\n

Setlist:<\/p>\n

Dreams and Disasters
\nThe Yacht Club
\nCave In
\nTip of the Iceberg
\nDementia
\nMeteor Shower
\nI\u2019m Coming After You
\nUmbrella Beach
\nSpeed of Love
\nSeahorses
\nAngels
\nDesigner Skyline
\nThe Real World
\nFireflies
\nSilhouette
\nHello Seattle
\nMetropolis
\nEmbers
\nShooting Star
\nDeer in the Headlights
\nTake it All Away<\/p>\n

Encore:
\nGood Time
\nGold
\nContact Robert at <\/u>robert@starsandsatellites.com<\/span><\/u><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Written by Robert Johnson Sep 18, 2012 at 07:00 PM Have you ever listened to a band you really enjoyed, yet thought there was no way that band could produce a compelling live show?\u00a0 For me, it isn’t meant as a slight to the band.\u00a0 Some music simply isn’t conducive to the live setting.\u00a0 There’s… <\/p>\n

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