brad you just don’t understand the musical genius in this album, the music is so enjoyable and incredible but you don’t understand how because your life isn’t like a video game.
@@leonsalgeuro valid, Brad always has to deal with dialogue repeating npc's in his comment section, which really shows us just how identical his life is to a video game.
@シドニーSydknee Never forget that Robert Fuckin Pattinson played guitar on Government Plates, that might be the most random collab in the history of music
It doesn't feel right to me personally to assume that when someone is being quirky and overly positive, that it's inauthentic. I made that assumption about someone in my life and only after knowing them for years and and on a more personal level I realized "oh, they actually are just like that." I don't know, as I've gotten older, cynically making assumptions about people and their motives has seemed more and more unproductive and shallow. Don't get me wrong, leaning more into seeing the best in people, instead of assuming the worst, has gotten me hurt more frequently than I used to. But I'm also a lot happier.
Everything about it is so fake too, like he's basically that one super religious guy you know who appears to be really happy and positive all the time, but you can tell it's all extremely fake after one conversation.
@@michaelvessel4604 that’s what I’m saying LMAOO, there is not a single person in the world anymore whose happy like that. That’s why I feel like he should stop making this pathetic excuse for music lol
@@jackasmaracas4362 I'm not sure if tacky's the right word, it does have appeal (or rather, it did before Midsummer Station imo). But with the exception of Ultraviolet and select songs from Cinematic, I feel like Owl City has definitely gotten worse
I feel like some of Owl City's older songs like Fireflies and Vanilla Twilight worked well as this very nostalgic synth-heavy pop music, it felt very reflective both in the music and in the lyrics, but also Adam feels completely disconnected from reality and often makes songs about experiences that literally no one can relate to. Like Deer in the Headlights is literally a song about stalking and getting beat up and pepper-sprayed by a girl? Like... Adam... what were you doing in college bro?
I think that’s the appeal of his music is that it’s full of imagination. Also there are plenty of songs he wrote that people can relate to like Silhouette, This Isn’t the End, Shooting Star, Beautiful Times, etc.
In response to that one question, the album feels like a boardroom of neurotypical people trying to make something trying to tactlessly pander to neurodivergent people. I'd also describe A.J.R. and Simple Plan as such. (For the record I am an Autistic woman)
I mean, I'm autistic myself and I don't feel that from this album, but I also don't think Adam's neurotypical. It's not confirmed, though, so I won't use that as an argument. But I feel like Coco Moon is his most consistent album since 2010, yet the quality of the music doesn't reach the heights of other work.
@@juliang1424 Also, apologies for the length of my comment, I'm a long-winded person! Just dont immediately look at the length and think like, "oh look, its an angry seething persom on the internet ranting", it's genuinely just long because i'm interested by the conversation and wanted to ask questions lmao
@@juliang1424 I think that encouraging someone to give up something that they love because they aren’t good at it is really ignorant behaviour. Let the man live, he isn’t hurting anyone. I may not like this album but I’ll defend his right to make and release it
@@Mac13949 fr, so at the end of the day like, whether he should continue making music or not definitely shouldn't be based on the negative opinions of people he'll never see the comments of imo
One of the worst things that could possibly happen happened at my high school on my first and only trip to Hawaii. I was miserable and crying the entire time, and couldn't leave because it was for my mom's work. So yeah Brad I can relate, I hope your next trip to Hawaii is a good experience.
I kind of understand people who like groups like Owl City and AJR - I agree it feels like nobody likes fun these days and their songs do a pretty good job of being lighthearted and cheerful. But WHY is the production always trash? Why does every indie/theatercore group have to use cheap ass keyboards, tinny drums, and 2000’s synths? If the sound were beefed up a bit more I’d actually be on board with this type of music
You can make very happy and fun music while still being musically interesting, look at KKB, Carly Rey Jepsen, Battles, Animal Collective, city pop, the more euphoric and fun side of Vaporwave, Torch, Tom Tom Club, Anamanaguchi, the list goes on Point being is that positivity shouldn't be used as an excuse for a lack of inspiration or laziness
Owl City is the antithesis of “Godspeed You! Black Emperor.” Whereas GY!BE is dark, melancholic, atmospheric, nihilistic, and contemplative, utilizing a beautiful mixture of sounds, conversations, and instrumental melodies to show mature stories and dying worlds playing out; Owl City is poppy, over-the-top, optimistic, childlike, and uses storybook poetry to tell its stories with occasional soft Christian themes. While I heavily prefer GY! over Owl City, I actually don’t hate OC nor think his approach is wrong (at least compared to someone like Gabbie Hannah, Diet Queen [aka Brandon Urine and his Ego] and Falling in Reverse). I actually unironically like Fireflies and consider it to be something of a guilty pleasure. I wouldn’t mind hearing more positive music. But the problem with Owl City is that his music is the definition of *too much.* It’s too poppy, too over the top, and too childlike that it comes off as incredibly kitsch and corny. Owl City is the equivalent to eating a cart of cotton candy with the highest concentration of sugar. I don’t hate this album, but I don’t vibe with it either.
Just wanted to say Owl CIty never made music to make it in the charts or to get people's approval. His past few albums have just been about stuff in his life. He genuinely just likes writing music.
I feel like there were some good ideas on this album especially the first track. Adam Young just needs like 2 other people to help trim all the fat off his ideas. This is what happens if you work without feedback
I dont linke this album neither, but i think as a great artist, the only critic should be yourself. It's bad for an artist to fullfill other peoples expectations, especially when your taste in music is different
Proving my comment that "brad is just fantano 2.0 now days" I can't watch anything new uploads now days tbh. I doubt you can find my comment. But my point was "he has 3-5 artists he loves no matter what, and everything else is trash"
@@jag-stang29 well to be honest, this "inside joke" is a fantano joke. So good job borrowing whatever the humor is. When the comment sections has "brad you can't watch a bug for ten minutes and call it a review" that's literally fantano chat and comments. Not much of an inside joke.
@@CycleOfJudges idk if this is some werd gatekeep or whatever but its common under brad videos so i commented an unfunny version of it. also are we not allowed to use it now? idk what you meant in your first comment bc id say its a 50/50 split between his negative reviews and positive ones and it doesnt really matter which artist it is
@@jag-stang29 I'm not going to get into 'oh it's half positive half negative oh the reviews are mixed' or whatever. That's not what I was even trying to say. My original point is irrelevant at this point. My point to you is that your "inside joke" is just a copy paste from fantanos comments. Which essentially adds to my point. Brad has become fantano. It's 5 artists he loves. And the rest are trash. 🤷 And based on the title of the video of course I'm not going to watch it. I have no interest in 40 minutes of someone trashing an artist. 👍 Same as fantano. I don't even watch either anymore. Because unless it's a few artist I know it's gonna be negative. Especially with that title. That all. I digress
@@VagabondRetro what's not clear is your reasoning as to why it's baby music. His music isn't necessarily babyish at all it's more music that can only be understood from a certain perspective. If you listen to nothing but trash modern day rap and pop music you definitely won't be able to understand it. I recommend you listen to his other side projects such as 'Sky Sailing', 'Port Blue' or even his score project to give you more context as to where his sound originated from and how it changed over time. Then maybe just MAYBE you'd understand and appreciate different forms of art more instead of spreading hate.
@@mattdebnam2464 your statement about modern pop and rap music doesn't make any sense. Everything Owl city has released is just as surface-level and uninspired as just about anything topping charts atm, if not more uninteresting
@@ey3z4ya i didn't make a statement on modern rap music and pop music apart from most of it being trash. Owl City (especially is older stuff) is nothing like modern pop music for a variety of reasons. It actually has a lot of artistic value especially in his side projects.
I mean basically. I hate that I have to hear Death Cab in a sentence with either of those two bands bc they’re so great despite not getting recognized by a lot of online music reviewers/nerds. Like OC and AJR try to evoke a lot of emotion in their song when all of the emotional impact of both bands don’t even come close to just the part of Styrofoam Plates where Ben sings “he was a bastard in life so a bastard in death”
Awwh, I really liked this album 💔 I can see why people don’t like it but I think compared to Cinematic and Mobile Orchestra i think it’s a good return to form for Owl City and personally I’m glad he came back to make this album
I will not stand for Owl City slander. Yeah everything released after 2011 is dogshit but All Things Bright and Beautiful and Maybe I'm Dreaming are both auditorial masterpieces that everyone sweeps under their radar for some reason, especially the latter.
@@MusicJunkie37 fair point, however, ultraviolet seemed a bit rushed and messy, at least to me. imo the other two albums were a lot more tight in terms of sound, meaning and execution.
The Dinosaur Park song is a bit similar to the Hawaii song in relation to its blindness towards native populations and American history. In South Dakota, the Black Hills (considered to be a sacred Native American religious site) were turned into the Mount Rushmore tourist attraction, an action which has been heavily frowned upon by Native Americans in the Dakotas and throughout the country. The Dinosaur Park tourist attraction in Rapid City, SD was directly created in order to capitalize on the tourists coming to see Mount Rushmore. If you don't or have never lived in either of the Dakotas, you probably aren't that interested in the specifics of this history, but Native Americans have historically been forced off of their lands around here for mostly the following resources: mining resources, oilfield industries, and fertile lands. I think the takeover of the Black Hills was mostly due to mining industries, but it could also be related to oil- at the very least, the Black Hills tourism monuments are not far away from the oilfields that have a bad history relating to Native American treatment. All of this makes the Dinosaur Park song suspect for ignorance for reasons similar to the Hawaii one.
Yeah I live in MN (Adam young also is from MN) and have been to SD a few times. The cursed dinosaur park, which-- I've unfortunately been to at least once--is literally the very last fucking thing in south dakota that would inspire me to write a song lol. If anything it might inspire me to write a cynical take about capitalism destroying culture. Adam young is extremely insensitive with his writing. Like I'm neurodivergent and white as hell too, that's no excuse for treating places like Hawaii and the Dakotas the same way a six year old mornon child on vacation does.
@@xcaliveristic5352 absolutely. you are scum of the earth, forever to be reviled. your legacy is eternally tainted, chained to the twisted enjoyment you have with this song.
Fun Fact about Primus: when Cliff Burton died (Original Metallics Bassist) Les Claypool auditioned and Metallica said in a nutshell "Your too good, you'll be better off doing your own thing." And now he's regarded as one of the best bass players ever.
It wasn't when Burton died, it was when they were auditioning after Newsted left. Pretty sure a bit of his audition is in the Some Kind of Monster documentary which is based of the making of St Anger. He was already regarded as one of the best bassists of all time
@@prometheustv6558 You are actually correct. The story seemed to be told mostly around the time Jason left and they were doing new auditions, hence the confusion.
Brad Taste In Music had been a music critic for many years . He had a great following and a reputation for being fair with his reviews good and bad. One day he received an email from Ronnie radke lead singer of the popular rock band "Falling in Reverse", challenging him to a music battle. Ronnie was known for his outrageous antics and controversial statements , often causing trouble with other musicians and critics. Brad Taste In Music had been one of his biggest critics calling out his behavior and sometimes giving his music unfavorable reviews. Brad was hesitant at first but soon became excited at the prospect of a music battle. The rules were simple; they would take turns selecting songs from different genres and the other would have to guess the song and artist. The winner would be declared the ultimate music champion. The day of the music battle arrived and a large crowd gathered to witness the event. Brad was confident in his musical knowledge, but Ronnie was not to be underestimated. The game was close, with each of them getting several songs right in a row. However, as the game went on Ronnie started to pull ahead, causing Brad to lose his cool. In a desperate move , Brad tried to challenge Ronnie with a difficult song from an obscure band, but Ronnie surprised everybody by guessing it right away. The crowd erupted in cheers as Ronnie was declared the winner. Brad was disappointed , but had to admit Ronnie had a great knowledge of music. As Ronnie walked away, Brad realized he had gained respect for his long-time rival. The battle brought them closer together and they promised to work on mending their friendship. Brad Taste In Music and Ronnie radke had battled it out, but in the end both walked away as champions. They were seen together having a drink later that night discussing the music they both loved people could tell this was the start of an unexpected friendship.
You should try listening to Zeph! She’s mentioned liking Owl City’s music a lot, and did production before singing. She produces all of her songs, and has a similar “busy and fun” production style, but I think with better choices and better writing
Brad as a Native Hawaiian I'd like to personally apologize for your horrible time in Hawaii, if you return I promise to contact the Hawaiian Gods to treat you less poorly
The moral of Tornado is "take life one storm at a time and you don't have to be afraid" because for Christians dying is not the end... living means you can continue to do God's work on earth, and dying means you can go home to Him. Coming face to face with absolute disaster and being okay with it because of his faith means that Adam now realizes he doesn't have to be scared of anything.
I really, really liked this album, it just makes me happy (And it helps that I'm a Christian who's glad Adam is making faith filled music that doesn't sound like generic, radio friendly CCM again), but I can definitely see why a lot of people hate it. It's definitely his weirdest album to date, for better and for worse. That said, you *seriously* need to at least listen to All Things Bright and Beautiful before you move on from Owl City. I don't know how anyone could call that album bad, it's fantastic.
I think Ultraviolet EP is his peak. His writing and production were on point. Beautiful Times, Up All Night, and Wolf Bite all slap (+This Isn’t The End is so emotional and inspiring, but it was moved to Mobile Orchestra for some reason) However, my favorite album by him is The Midsummer Station because it’s fun, motivational, and full of dance bops.
i agree with your takes - midsummer station isn't my favorite tho, but it's super nostalgic and i consider it his last great studio album. his music just went downhill fast after that
FIELD NOTES - i CAN'T believe how dense y'all all are. If you listen to the dang story at its own speed you'll see the moral is clear. He found the chest on property that wasn't his, so it wasn't his chest or gold. While he could've stole it, that's bad for the soul, so he didn't. Instead he decided to do the honest thing and purchase the field, with hopes that the gold would then be his legally. It worked out well in the end for him because he didn't rank physical values over one of the most valuable spiritual assets, your soul. You had to be there.
2:48 it is funny that after a decade plus of being accused of being a Postal Service knockoff Owl City started an album with the extreme panning technique used in the intro of “Such Great Heights”, The Postal Service’s biggest hit lol
Adam's old writing was so much better than this. I appreciated how poetic and metaphorical all of his lyrics were, and how the music supported that ethereality. Hearing him sing about talent agents over corporate-sounding beats is not as enjoyable as hearing him sing about bedsheets draped over ghosts and furniture.
As someone who has spent far too much time working in retail, I'll definitely agree that Adam, Check Please is kinda cute and funny. It's not exactly some deep, "wow that really makes you think" type song and the instrumental is kinda meh, but I smiled
It’s honestly so humbling that a band as big as Owl City is wearing their influences on their sleeves. You can really see the impact that Dream’s “The Mask” had on the track list.
Surprised you didn't notice the Primus South park thing tbh, when I first listened to Jerry was a racecar driver the first thing I thought was 'This sounds like the South Park theme" and looked it up
This album is ok. Not amazing, but has some genuinely solid moments, and has a very nice, idyllic atmosphere. Kelly Time in particular is legit beautiful.
Wtf I just got done watching a moistcritikal clip of him talking about Primus, only for Primus to be the first thing Brad is listening to in this video.
NGL the tempo change-ups in most of these songs are pretty sick. It's impressive how effortlessly this band can transition mid song. Objectively I'd say a pro is the overall production value. Cons: Lyrics, Christian Messages. What's frustrating is whenever a song has potential (ex: Sons of Thunder) the band sells out in order to preach a Bible lesson 🤦🏾♂(ex: Field Notes / The Tornado / Meadow Lark). These songs could have been really cool and dreamy if they just stuck with creativity and imagination.
Dude I was the same way when I found out Primus made the South Park theme, I felt stupid I didn't even catch on to that after all these years listening to Pork Soda and Sailing The Seas of Cheese and watching South Park 15+ years
Man, I LOVE old owl city songs, they have such a child-like surrealness to them. Rainbow Veins, Cave In, and Tip of the Iceberg are my jam. So I was excited when I saw there were new songs but yeah... none of these really clicked with me the way his old stuff did sadly.
This albums... The sounds are quite something. Like really you couldn't sound more 2012. It's so theatre kid too. I feel like I should hate this much more than I should but I can feel that these guys had a lot of fun making it and if I met them they'd probably be really nice and fun guys to hang out with, that's my assumption at least. Just very positive. It's got a childlike wonder to it where you don't know what good taste is so you haven't been turned off to the intense corniness of this whole thing, and can accept the parts of it that are worth appreciating. Edit: I realized part way through that they're christian. This explains so much.
i feel like owl city recorded like 200 songs in 2012-2013 and then releases a few of them every few years to make albums
fireflies is a bop but this album is like if a theater kid was hired to write a corporate anthem for a megachurch
So accurate it hurts 💀
This is the most devastating insult to an artist ever invented.
Fireflies biggest strength was how well it captured childlike wonder.
A bit easier to do in your early 20's than when you're rapidly approaching 40.
Couldn't have explained it better
brad you just don’t understand the musical genius in this album, the music is so enjoyable and incredible but you don’t understand how because your life isn’t like a video game.
Brad blindly continues to collect coins
@@leonsalgeuro poser
Yeah, it's possible that Brad lost his way again 😞
@@leonsalgeuro poser
@@leonsalgeuro valid, Brad always has to deal with dialogue repeating npc's in his comment section, which really shows us just how identical his life is to a video game.
Can we go back to good music like limp Bizkit please
*limp dicksimp
It’s just all in the family
Seconded
@@declanwatkins6450 My dick is bigger than yours
The Korn pfp makes this 10x funnier
If the South Park thing surprised him, I'd love to see his reaction to Les Claypool (the lead singer/bassist of Primus) being in a Death Grips song
I was thinking that to lmao. Fucking Justin from Tool played bass on a few songs from YOTS, Death Grips has some weird connections
and a great one at that, that song fucking SLAPS
@シドニーSydknee Never forget that Robert Fuckin Pattinson played guitar on Government Plates, that might be the most random collab in the history of music
@@andrei11dr OH YEAHH I almost forgot about that one
Les Claypool also did the theme for Robot Chicken.
The appeal of Owl City's early work was how well it captured childhood wonder.
Nearly 15 years later, I think you can see the problem.
It doesn't feel right to me personally to assume that when someone is being quirky and overly positive, that it's inauthentic. I made that assumption about someone in my life and only after knowing them for years and and on a more personal level I realized "oh, they actually are just like that." I don't know, as I've gotten older, cynically making assumptions about people and their motives has seemed more and more unproductive and shallow. Don't get me wrong, leaning more into seeing the best in people, instead of assuming the worst, has gotten me hurt more frequently than I used to. But I'm also a lot happier.
People are too used and jaded to people who are fake online for brownie points
Exactly.
“When Can I See You Again” is Owl City’s best song hands down
Also it technically is a one man opera since Adam Young is Owl City
I like Good Time by Owl City the best
@@edgytypebeat781 Good instrumental but Carly Rae Jepsen absolutely carries that track.
i genuinelly rly like fireflies, that song slaps. But its possibly the nostalgia talking
@@liaspooked4980 I think musically it's the best of his hits by far. But I prefer so many of his early deep cuts
@@liaspooked4980 same
How can Owl City stay positive all the time like that lol
religion 😔
Religion is hell of a drug
Ikr, it’s pretty disgusting lmao
Everything about it is so fake too, like he's basically that one super religious guy you know who appears to be really happy and positive all the time, but you can tell it's all extremely fake after one conversation.
@@michaelvessel4604 that’s what I’m saying LMAOO, there is not a single person in the world anymore whose happy like that. That’s why I feel like he should stop making this pathetic excuse for music lol
I’m always shocked when I’m reminded owl city still exists.
im even more amazed they still sound the same as 14 years ago
@@stang9806 I wouldn't say this sounds the same, tbh. I can kinda see it, but it's not the same
@edgeworth09 Well they're consistently tacky at least.
@@jackasmaracas4362 I'm not sure if tacky's the right word, it does have appeal (or rather, it did before Midsummer Station imo). But with the exception of Ultraviolet and select songs from Cinematic, I feel like Owl City has definitely gotten worse
@@juliang1424 He had that one song with CRJ which kinda slaps in a guilty pleasure way
I feel like some of Owl City's older songs like Fireflies and Vanilla Twilight worked well as this very nostalgic synth-heavy pop music, it felt very reflective both in the music and in the lyrics, but also Adam feels completely disconnected from reality and often makes songs about experiences that literally no one can relate to. Like Deer in the Headlights is literally a song about stalking and getting beat up and pepper-sprayed by a girl? Like... Adam... what were you doing in college bro?
I think that’s the appeal of his music is that it’s full of imagination. Also there are plenty of songs he wrote that people can relate to like Silhouette, This Isn’t the End, Shooting Star, Beautiful Times, etc.
This Album came out 2 weeks ago and sounds like it was made in 2010.
Yeah lmao, dead mouse album was so much better lmao
Best thing Owl City was ever involved in was being mashed up with Nine Inch Nails on Neil Cicierega's Mouth Dreams
Actually its dinosaur park
In response to that one question, the album feels like a boardroom of neurotypical people trying to make something trying to tactlessly pander to neurodivergent people. I'd also describe A.J.R. and Simple Plan as such.
(For the record I am an Autistic woman)
I mean, I'm autistic myself and I don't feel that from this album, but I also don't think Adam's neurotypical. It's not confirmed, though, so I won't use that as an argument. But I feel like Coco Moon is his most consistent album since 2010, yet the quality of the music doesn't reach the heights of other work.
@@edgeworth097 Also fair. My initial comment was mainly just a quick snap-judgement response to that one bit in Brads video from my perspective.
@@JillyMaysHere Just to be clear, which bit are you referring to?
I'm neurodivergent, and I love AJR.
@@jeremyusreevu237 also perfectly valid.
When Brad played that full clip of the AJR soundbite I concluded that he isn't harsh enough on them because my god
Hey Jeremy, you missed one
What's wrong with that clip? Those parts of the show are cool.
@@zenksren8206 Lol.
@@jeremyusreevu237 it's ok Jeremy I've been on the channel a while I know you feel differently :D
Vitamin Sea sounds like a song that would play in a Disney Channel show/movie from 2005.
Teen Beach Movie core
I love hearing about Brad's discovery of Primus.
Hunter issac the 🐐
I can’t disagree with the take but being mean to Owl City always feels like kicking a puppy to death
@@juliang1424 or he can keep doing it because he enjoys it and guys like Julian G on the internet shouldn't factor into that decision?
@@juliang1424 Also, apologies for the length of my comment, I'm a long-winded person! Just dont immediately look at the length and think like, "oh look, its an angry seething persom on the internet ranting", it's genuinely just long because i'm interested by the conversation and wanted to ask questions lmao
@@juliang1424 I think that encouraging someone to give up something that they love because they aren’t good at it is really ignorant behaviour. Let the man live, he isn’t hurting anyone. I may not like this album but I’ll defend his right to make and release it
@@Simon-nb3ne I don’t think owl city is gonna see this comment section
@@Mac13949 fr, so at the end of the day like, whether he should continue making music or not definitely shouldn't be based on the negative opinions of people he'll never see the comments of imo
Always love brads sound board evolution
One of the worst things that could possibly happen happened at my high school on my first and only trip to Hawaii. I was miserable and crying the entire time, and couldn't leave because it was for my mom's work. So yeah Brad I can relate, I hope your next trip to Hawaii is a good experience.
Owl city should take notes from:
Sky Sailing, Swimming with dolphins, Port Blue and the guy who made the movie scores in 2016
And Flames pond
lol
I kind of understand people who like groups like Owl City and AJR - I agree it feels like nobody likes fun these days and their songs do a pretty good job of being lighthearted and cheerful. But WHY is the production always trash? Why does every indie/theatercore group have to use cheap ass keyboards, tinny drums, and 2000’s synths? If the sound were beefed up a bit more I’d actually be on board with this type of music
this is so real
Fr I kinda miss the corny early 2000s era but it doesn’t hit in 2023 and needs to change it up
You can make very happy and fun music while still being musically interesting, look at KKB, Carly Rey Jepsen, Battles, Animal Collective, city pop, the more euphoric and fun side of Vaporwave, Torch, Tom Tom Club, Anamanaguchi, the list goes on
Point being is that positivity shouldn't be used as an excuse for a lack of inspiration or laziness
But what if I like 2000's synths?!
Yes I like happy unironic music and cute synths but these bands do it in such a bad way IMO
33:34 brad going feral is one of the funniest things i've ever seen in my life
Owl City is the antithesis of “Godspeed You! Black Emperor.” Whereas GY!BE is dark, melancholic, atmospheric, nihilistic, and contemplative, utilizing a beautiful mixture of sounds, conversations, and instrumental melodies to show mature stories and dying worlds playing out; Owl City is poppy, over-the-top, optimistic, childlike, and uses storybook poetry to tell its stories with occasional soft Christian themes. While I heavily prefer GY! over Owl City, I actually don’t hate OC nor think his approach is wrong (at least compared to someone like Gabbie Hannah, Diet Queen [aka Brandon Urine and his Ego] and Falling in Reverse). I actually unironically like Fireflies and consider it to be something of a guilty pleasure. I wouldn’t mind hearing more positive music. But the problem with Owl City is that his music is the definition of *too much.* It’s too poppy, too over the top, and too childlike that it comes off as incredibly kitsch and corny. Owl City is the equivalent to eating a cart of cotton candy with the highest concentration of sugar. I don’t hate this album, but I don’t vibe with it either.
idc what anyone says alligator sky goes hard
Just wanted to say Owl CIty never made music to make it in the charts or to get people's approval. His past few albums have just been about stuff in his life. He genuinely just likes writing music.
that’s sweet honestly
if only he were actually decent at making music, then i'd probably respect that a lot
@@wozaow where are your followers?
He should just make instrumentals and not write lyrics.
@@lackles27He doesn’t get paid to make music😊
I feel like there were some good ideas on this album especially the first track. Adam Young just needs like 2 other people to help trim all the fat off his ideas. This is what happens if you work without feedback
perhaps the other 2 people should have the first initials J and R
I dont linke this album neither, but i think as a great artist, the only critic should be yourself. It's bad for an artist to fullfill other peoples expectations, especially when your taste in music is different
not even joking this album ACTUALLY put me to sleep. i had to replay this video twice because i kept falling asleep and missing the last half
Fr musical equivalent of a baby's crib mobile
brad, a 30 minute review of fireflies does not count as full listen of cocomelon
Proving my comment that "brad is just fantano 2.0 now days" I can't watch anything new uploads now days tbh. I doubt you can find my comment. But my point was "he has 3-5 artists he loves no matter what, and everything else is trash"
@@CycleOfJudges what. this is a comment based on an inside joke in this community i dont understand what this has to do with my comment
@@jag-stang29 well to be honest, this "inside joke" is a fantano joke. So good job borrowing whatever the humor is. When the comment sections has "brad you can't watch a bug for ten minutes and call it a review" that's literally fantano chat and comments. Not much of an inside joke.
@@CycleOfJudges idk if this is some werd gatekeep or whatever but its common under brad videos so i commented an unfunny version of it. also are we not allowed to use it now? idk what you meant in your first comment bc id say its a 50/50 split between his negative reviews and positive ones and it doesnt really matter which artist it is
@@jag-stang29 I'm not going to get into 'oh it's half positive half negative oh the reviews are mixed' or whatever. That's not what I was even trying to say. My original point is irrelevant at this point. My point to you is that your "inside joke" is just a copy paste from fantanos comments. Which essentially adds to my point. Brad has become fantano. It's 5 artists he loves. And the rest are trash. 🤷 And based on the title of the video of course I'm not going to watch it. I have no interest in 40 minutes of someone trashing an artist. 👍 Same as fantano. I don't even watch either anymore. Because unless it's a few artist I know it's gonna be negative. Especially with that title. That all. I digress
The circus one (esp sped up) sounds like a Vocaloid song from 2010
this album feels like you're listening to the kidz bop version instead of the actual one
I feel like I’m watching a bully on the back of the bus roast the horse girls music
LMFAOOO
It baffles me that Fireflies is even above average, as almost everything else Owl City makes is literally baby music.
Explain why what you just said makes sense
@@mattdebnam2464 The same guy who makes nothing but songs that could be put into a babies show made one good song. How is this not clear?
@@VagabondRetro what's not clear is your reasoning as to why it's baby music. His music isn't necessarily babyish at all it's more music that can only be understood from a certain perspective. If you listen to nothing but trash modern day rap and pop music you definitely won't be able to understand it. I recommend you listen to his other side projects such as 'Sky Sailing', 'Port Blue' or even his score project to give you more context as to where his sound originated from and how it changed over time. Then maybe just MAYBE you'd understand and appreciate different forms of art more instead of spreading hate.
@@mattdebnam2464 your statement about modern pop and rap music doesn't make any sense. Everything Owl city has released is just as surface-level and uninspired as just about anything topping charts atm, if not more uninteresting
@@ey3z4ya i didn't make a statement on modern rap music and pop music apart from most of it being trash. Owl City (especially is older stuff) is nothing like modern pop music for a variety of reasons. It actually has a lot of artistic value especially in his side projects.
We need to go back to Demondice and 🍫⭐️🐠
AJR + Death Cab = Owl City
i hate that this makes sense tbh
@@harleyfields1664 it doesnt
I mean basically. I hate that I have to hear Death Cab in a sentence with either of those two bands bc they’re so great despite not getting recognized by a lot of online music reviewers/nerds. Like OC and AJR try to evoke a lot of emotion in their song when all of the emotional impact of both bands don’t even come close to just the part of Styrofoam Plates where Ben sings “he was a bastard in life so a bastard in death”
Awwh, I really liked this album 💔 I can see why people don’t like it but I think compared to Cinematic and Mobile Orchestra i think it’s a good return to form for Owl City and personally I’m glad he came back to make this album
Yeah, same ima go to the tour, it’s funny and sad to hear him tear Into it but I actually like Owl City, the older songs and the new stuff
I loved cinematic alot more but I just saw him play in Detroit and it was awesome.
I will not stand for Owl City slander. Yeah everything released after 2011 is dogshit but All Things Bright and Beautiful and Maybe I'm Dreaming are both auditorial masterpieces that everyone sweeps under their radar for some reason, especially the latter.
Love those albums but I disagree that all was dogshit after that, Ultraviolet is like peak Owl City and that was released 2014
@@MusicJunkie37 fair point, however, ultraviolet seemed a bit rushed and messy, at least to me. imo the other two albums were a lot more tight in terms of sound, meaning and execution.
the sped-up versions of the songs on this album are better than the actual versions of them.
Yeah cus they end faster
i can imagine cus his voice sounds dragged out in the original
The Dinosaur Park song is a bit similar to the Hawaii song in relation to its blindness towards native populations and American history. In South Dakota, the Black Hills (considered to be a sacred Native American religious site) were turned into the Mount Rushmore tourist attraction, an action which has been heavily frowned upon by Native Americans in the Dakotas and throughout the country. The Dinosaur Park tourist attraction in Rapid City, SD was directly created in order to capitalize on the tourists coming to see Mount Rushmore. If you don't or have never lived in either of the Dakotas, you probably aren't that interested in the specifics of this history, but Native Americans have historically been forced off of their lands around here for mostly the following resources: mining resources, oilfield industries, and fertile lands. I think the takeover of the Black Hills was mostly due to mining industries, but it could also be related to oil- at the very least, the Black Hills tourism monuments are not far away from the oilfields that have a bad history relating to Native American treatment. All of this makes the Dinosaur Park song suspect for ignorance for reasons similar to the Hawaii one.
Yeah I live in MN (Adam young also is from MN) and have been to SD a few times. The cursed dinosaur park, which-- I've unfortunately been to at least once--is literally the very last fucking thing in south dakota that would inspire me to write a song lol. If anything it might inspire me to write a cynical take about capitalism destroying culture. Adam young is extremely insensitive with his writing. Like I'm neurodivergent and white as hell too, that's no excuse for treating places like Hawaii and the Dakotas the same way a six year old mornon child on vacation does.
This is awful am i bad for enjoying dinosaur park as song
@@xcaliveristic5352 absolutely. you are scum of the earth, forever to be reviled. your legacy is eternally tainted, chained to the twisted enjoyment you have with this song.
i just farted
Did you ask permission?
W
field notes literally sounds like something my religious parents would put on in the car for me as a 5 year old
Lmao, I recommend j cole HES way better
@@juliang1424 Bro this guy really likes j cole
@@j.6267 way better than this embarrassing excuse for music lmao
5:39 SUS
0:33 Lol I made the Coco melon comment. Love how Brad used it.
I bought Frizzle Fry on a whim in college, and it still rocks to this day. 10/10 way to start a video.
Fun Fact about Primus: when Cliff Burton died (Original Metallics Bassist) Les Claypool auditioned and Metallica said in a nutshell "Your too good, you'll be better off doing your own thing." And now he's regarded as one of the best bass players ever.
It wasn't when Burton died, it was when they were auditioning after Newsted left. Pretty sure a bit of his audition is in the Some Kind of Monster documentary which is based of the making of St Anger. He was already regarded as one of the best bassists of all time
@@Cian._.No it was when Cliff died
@@prometheustv6558 You are actually correct. The story seemed to be told mostly around the time Jason left and they were doing new auditions, hence the confusion.
Brad Taste In Music had been a music critic for many years . He had a great following and a reputation for being fair with his reviews good and bad. One day he received an email from Ronnie radke lead singer of the popular rock band "Falling in Reverse", challenging him to a music battle.
Ronnie was known for his outrageous antics and controversial statements , often causing trouble with other musicians and critics. Brad Taste In Music had been one of his biggest critics calling out his behavior and sometimes giving his music unfavorable reviews.
Brad was hesitant at first but soon became excited at the prospect of a music battle. The rules were simple; they would take turns selecting songs from different genres and the other would have to guess the song and artist.
The winner would be declared the ultimate music champion.
The day of the music battle arrived and a large crowd gathered to witness the event. Brad was confident in his musical knowledge, but Ronnie was not to be underestimated. The game was close, with each of them getting several songs right in a row. However, as the game went on Ronnie started to pull ahead, causing Brad to lose his cool.
In a desperate move , Brad tried to challenge Ronnie with a difficult song from an obscure band, but Ronnie surprised everybody by guessing it right away. The crowd erupted in cheers as Ronnie was declared the winner.
Brad was disappointed , but had to admit Ronnie had a great knowledge of music. As Ronnie walked away, Brad realized he had gained respect for his long-time rival. The battle brought them closer together and they promised to work on mending their friendship.
Brad Taste In Music and Ronnie radke had battled it out, but in the end both walked away as champions. They were seen together having a drink later that night discussing the music they both loved people could tell this was the start of an unexpected friendship.
This is the Brad Taste's equivalent of that one comment in the Corey Feldman review by fantano
@@LucasNicolau-ys4kk I know the exact comment you're talking about, and you're completely correct.
why does it feel like chatgpt wrote this
@Send.a.dm-. No I do not think I'm in the mood today
@@chop4045 to me it feels like its the beginning of the Stanley Parable.
“There once was a man named Brad”
You should try listening to Zeph! She’s mentioned liking Owl City’s music a lot, and did production before singing. She produces all of her songs, and has a similar “busy and fun” production style, but I think with better choices and better writing
Brad as a Native Hawaiian I'd like to personally apologize for your horrible time in Hawaii, if you return I promise to contact the Hawaiian Gods to treat you less poorly
The stars look down to kiss you, but coco moon kinda hates you
A trip of an album (a good album) would be House Arrest by Ariel Pink. Unlike anything else you’ll ever hear, it’s quite incredible
Yeah, orange man antics aside, ariel is honest to god one of the best pop stars of the last few decades
the insurrectionist Ariel Pink? that one?
@@chaotic.content no. The one who was in a hotel with John Maus, while the insurrection happened. He was in DC, but he wasn’t THERE.
As a hardcore owl city fan, this hurts a bit lmao
Same 😂, at least he liked Kelly Time kinda
@@corvettelovertopdrives yea and he said he like fireflies in his ocean eyes reaction.
Same, but Brad's right. His new album is really bad.
The moral of Tornado is "take life one storm at a time and you don't have to be afraid" because for Christians dying is not the end... living means you can continue to do God's work on earth, and dying means you can go home to Him. Coming face to face with absolute disaster and being okay with it because of his faith means that Adam now realizes he doesn't have to be scared of anything.
i completely believe brad as like a 10 year old saying "WOW LOOK AT YOU GUYS FALLING INTO COMMERCIALISM" to his classmates lmfao
I didn’t even know Owl City was still around. All I remember about him is that he got famous by basically being the Postal Service if they sucked.
@@juliang1424 bad bait, give me your address now
As someone currently at school in Rapid City, the fact he made Dinosaur Park was like a gut punch. Literally insane to write
Owl City made a promotional song for a gacha game I play called Project Neural Cloud, and it's a lot better than whatever the hell this album is
I really, really liked this album, it just makes me happy (And it helps that I'm a Christian who's glad Adam is making faith filled music that doesn't sound like generic, radio friendly CCM again), but I can definitely see why a lot of people hate it. It's definitely his weirdest album to date, for better and for worse. That said, you *seriously* need to at least listen to All Things Bright and Beautiful before you move on from Owl City. I don't know how anyone could call that album bad, it's fantastic.
Had to double take, thought I was having deja vu but no you’re the guy who wrote the really positive review on rym.
@@rolfanderson3925 You might also know me as the guy who showed up in one of Strong Bad's fan costumes videos dressed in a Bubs costume costume.
I think Ultraviolet EP is his peak. His writing and production were on point. Beautiful Times, Up All Night, and Wolf Bite all slap (+This Isn’t The End is so emotional and inspiring, but it was moved to Mobile Orchestra for some reason)
However, my favorite album by him is The Midsummer Station because it’s fun, motivational, and full of dance bops.
i agree with your takes - midsummer station isn't my favorite tho, but it's super nostalgic and i consider it his last great studio album. his music just went downhill fast after that
wolf bite has a neat riff at the start, he should use it in literally every song since then
FIELD NOTES - i CAN'T believe how dense y'all all are. If you listen to the dang story at its own speed you'll see the moral is clear. He found the chest on property that wasn't his, so it wasn't his chest or gold. While he could've stole it, that's bad for the soul, so he didn't. Instead he decided to do the honest thing and purchase the field, with hopes that the gold would then be his legally. It worked out well in the end for him because he didn't rank physical values over one of the most valuable spiritual assets, your soul. You had to be there.
Ain’t nobody reading allat
LMFAO only on the first song but WTF
not the live sampling a baby crying
2:48 it is funny that after a decade plus of being accused of being a Postal Service knockoff Owl City started an album with the extreme panning technique used in the intro of “Such Great Heights”, The Postal Service’s biggest hit lol
Owl City is Postal Service for youth pastors and yelp reviewers
3:23 thank you for telling where it came from, i had been wondering for months
I’m so glad I don’t need to feel pain anymore, Brad’s taken it upon his shoulders for us all
Brad is Christ-like figure confirmed?
This album made me a christian because if this is what hell is like than I never want to end up there
I unironically like some owl city albums
personally, I'm this way but with specific songs - I have specific tunes from Ocean Eyes and Maybe I'm Dreaming on my phone, but not the whole albums
You say that like it’s a bad thing.
This guy knows how to make one song and that's it
Edit: also every time I hear that synthetic pluck I immediately think of the among us trap remix
18:04 because buying land in bible times usually meant you had to use it for farming
This album is made for Disney adults.
LMFAO
i dunno i really liked it 😭 i’m a sucker for upbeat and whimsical
Agreed. It's pretty solid.
Same hat 😭
@Send.a.dm-_ shut up scammy boi
Adam's old writing was so much better than this. I appreciated how poetic and metaphorical all of his lyrics were, and how the music supported that ethereality. Hearing him sing about talent agents over corporate-sounding beats is not as enjoyable as hearing him sing about bedsheets draped over ghosts and furniture.
Brad Taste In Owl City
As someone who has spent far too much time working in retail, I'll definitely agree that Adam, Check Please is kinda cute and funny. It's not exactly some deep, "wow that really makes you think" type song and the instrumental is kinda meh, but I smiled
10:22 this is why I love Brad lmfao
Grocery store-core
I'd love to see a review of all things bright and beautiful
These songs are like twice as long as they should be. On at least 80% of these songs, I just wished it would end at the halfway point
Half the songs on this albulm feel like late-stage capitalist christiancore mixed with Meghan Traynor vocal melodies
It’s honestly so humbling that a band as big as Owl City is wearing their influences on their sleeves. You can really see the impact that Dream’s “The Mask” had on the track list.
an owl house is fine, but an owl CITY??…..don’t you think that’s a bit much?
I just listened to 2 songs from this album and then immediately came here. Those first two tracks are rough, can't listen alone.
Brad hears AJR and I just keep getting reminded of Jack Johnson with extra guitar.
Why didn’t you delete the channel Brad
Surprised you didn't notice the Primus South park thing tbh, when I first listened to Jerry was a racecar driver the first thing I thought was 'This sounds like the South Park theme" and looked it up
This album is ok. Not amazing, but has some genuinely solid moments, and has a very nice, idyllic atmosphere. Kelly Time in particular is legit beautiful.
Wtf I just got done watching a moistcritikal clip of him talking about Primus, only for Primus to be the first thing Brad is listening to in this video.
😂
the Primus illuminati are starting to pull some strings, be careful man
Dental Care sounded like some Lukas Graham bullshit
thats that sims 3 pluck lmao
congrats on the sobriety btw :)
this is definitively one of the most dated albums i have ever heard
Yeah, easily pretty horrendous
primus starting off the vid is amazing
Something about the way he enunciates every word while singing is uncanny valley for me.
Music to repress your homosexual thoughts to at Sunday school
Fun fact: Owl City has literally been a Christian (artist) since his musical career began. Just listen to Mobile Orchestra...
You may not believe your ears, this album will bring you to tears, because it’s very, very, very mid
One of the albums
NGL the tempo change-ups in most of these songs are pretty sick. It's impressive how effortlessly this band can transition mid song. Objectively I'd say a pro is the overall production value. Cons: Lyrics, Christian Messages.
What's frustrating is whenever a song has potential (ex: Sons of Thunder) the band sells out in order to preach a Bible lesson 🤦🏾♂(ex: Field Notes / The Tornado / Meadow Lark).
These songs could have been really cool and dreamy if they just stuck with creativity and imagination.
Not a band btw
Dude I was the same way when I found out Primus made the South Park theme, I felt stupid I didn't even catch on to that after all these years listening to Pork Soda and Sailing The Seas of Cheese and watching South Park 15+ years
Man, I LOVE old owl city songs, they have such a child-like surrealness to them. Rainbow Veins, Cave In, and Tip of the Iceberg are my jam. So I was excited when I saw there were new songs but yeah... none of these really clicked with me the way his old stuff did sadly.
I ain't gonna lie, but my game ending ideation went crazy from that first track 😅🔫
This albums... The sounds are quite something. Like really you couldn't sound more 2012. It's so theatre kid too.
I feel like I should hate this much more than I should but I can feel that these guys had a lot of fun making it and if I met them they'd probably be really nice and fun guys to hang out with, that's my assumption at least. Just very positive. It's got a childlike wonder to it where you don't know what good taste is so you haven't been turned off to the intense corniness of this whole thing, and can accept the parts of it that are worth appreciating.
Edit: I realized part way through that they're christian. This explains so much.
owl city is one person
@@waytoobiased Didn't know that, just assumed they were a band cuz of the name.