Owl City’s Adam Young sold an astonishing 12 million copies of his ‘Fireflies’ single last year. However, he has singularly failed to follow that achievement with a decent album. From the sweet, sugary lyrics to Young’s Autotuned voice, this record is equal parts soulless and irritating.
All Things Bright And Beautiful is the second album under the Owl City moniker. In theory, the use of piano and guitar should add depth and texture. However, the subtlety of these instruments is drowned out on ‘Honey And The Bee’ by Young’s emotionless voice and the prominent, repetitive basslines.
The outlook of the lyrics and overall feel of the album is very positive and cheerful, and Owl City fans may well be turned on by this. But there is a distinct lack of emotion, even on the hyper-romantic ‘The Real World’.
Young clearly has talent. It’s obvious that the tracks were intentionally sugar-coated. But All Things Bright And Beautiful doesn’t float my boat.