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album review

Owl City

Ocean Eyes (Universal Republic)

Reviewed by Ryan Pangilinan
Tagged
2009 electronic electropop emo minnesota bands owl city powerpop universal republic

ALBUM RATING:

D-


Buy / Download
PURCHASE
Over six years after the Postal Service's debut, the music produced by Ben Gibbard and Jimmy Tamborello is still influencing new jacks like Adam Young, who takes the stage name Owl City.

Owl City's been there, done that album, Ocean Eyes, rips several pages off from Gibbard's illustrious career as one of indie rock's most revered songwriters. Yet, instead of challenging listeners, Owl City's quasi-posi lyricism rests on his ambition to be the Christian version of the Postal Service, which comes off as cheesy and imitative.

The stale-sounding "Hello Seattle" contains the following words (best read with a deadpan delivery): "Hello Seattle, I am an old lighthouse, throwing beams of bright light."

Well, what else is a lighthouse supposed to do, dummy?

The vocoder and Auto-Tune effects used on Young's voice make him sound like a weird hybrid between Forrest Kline from hellogoodbye, T-Pain, and Roger Troutman... but, y'know... not as good.

There's also the repetition between tracks like "Cave In" and "The Tip of the Iceberg," which both utilize the same drum loop, as if an intelligent listener wouldn't be able to distinguish between the two in the 20 minutes that elapses between them.

All in all, I found Ocean Eyes to be a bland rip-off of the latter-era works of Ben Gibbard, minus the honesty or literary references. While Death Cab and Postal Service are good bands to take influence from, the fact that Ocean Eyes is a by-the-numbers imitation is downright chilling -- not to mention, insulting.

But, there's very little that could be said to deter people from buying this rubbish. It's just lowest common denominator enough to appeal to the person with the blandest of tastes and who still listens to the Garden State soundtrack five years after the fact.



THE AVERAGE USER RATING IS A C
Jane rated this an F on September 23, 2009:

this cd is dumb. my friends told me about it and it totally sounded like postal service, which wasn't that good anyway.

aqw rated this a B on September 24, 2009:

melody is melody buddy, get used to it, it's what people want. there's also nothing wrong with listening to a CD five years after the fact if you like it. your review sounds extremely defensive which makes me think you don't have enough distance from this to give it an honest review.

Josh rated this an A on September 24, 2009:

Owl city sounds awesome and people are going to listen to them no matter who they sound like, to each his own. How is it any diff than every rapper who comes out with a "new" song? They all sound the same and no one calls them knockoffs.

jordan rated this a D on September 25, 2009:

actually, many people DO call those rappers knock-offs, and many of them are in fact horrible!

Rachel rated this a C on September 28, 2009:

Haha... I work at a noncommercial radio station where Death Cab and The Postal Service are banned (on account of being too popular), and the first thing everyone says is, "This sounds like the Postal Service."

While it's definitely not the most original thing ever created, it's okay to listen to in small doses. But I suppose we're all doing quality control at base level, trying, desperately, to keep these people out of the mainstream.

Mark rated this an A on September 28, 2009:

uuuhmmmm...

Ok, first. I don't know how you can say Owl City is a rip-off Postal Service. They sound completely different. Just because they're both electronic doesn't mean they're the same... I think Owl City is highly original. I've never heard anything like it.

Second. I think Adam's lyrics are fantastic. They're pure poetry. Well duh light house shines light, but it's how he says it that makes it beautiful. That's what poetry is.

Third. I like how adam voice sounds with the effects. I think it's done in a tasteful way, it's not overdone, and you can actually tell that he can sing (unlike most auto-tune users... ahem T-Pain). But i CAN understand how some people wouldn't like it.

Fourth. Maybe I missed it... but i didn't hear any repetition of drums between the two tracks. Just because they have the same beat doesn't mean they're the same drums. They're ARE differences between them.

Overall. This Album is creative and Original. To say otherwise is a lie. Now I'm not saying everyone should like this music, everyone has their own tastes, but don't rip on it for STUPID reasons because you don't like it ....... or fail to have any musical taste ; )

open your ears rated this a D on September 29, 2009:

Dear "uuuhmmmm" maybe you need to turn the music up a little because owl city sounds almost identical to the postal service with crappy lyrics. dont get me wrong im not saying every song needs to be the most heartfelt thing youve ever written but ive heard of a few of their songs now, not having any idea of the artist and was 100% convinced it was the postal service, it is FAR from original

Mark rated this an F on September 30, 2009:

If you like this, you're probably 15 years old and your favorite band is Cobra Starship. Hey kid, listen to some real bands like Fugazi or Q and Not U. My little sister CD liked this CD, then I gave her the first Death Cab album and she returned this shit to the store. Fuck Owl City.

Shanzie rated this an A on October 06, 2009:

This is a terrible and harsh review.
Adam Young is an inspiration.
Don't bash on him if you aren't going to bash on other bands that sound like the postal service as well.
If your going to unfairly judge Owl city like this, expect angry fans to slam you.

sharon rated this a C on October 07, 2009:

i love how balanced these comments are! it seems he's equally hated as he is loved. hahahahha.

John Gillanders rated this an F on October 07, 2009:

I'd just like to argue with anyone who says this band doesn't sound like the postal service. I've never heard this record and I never will, but I caught maybe a minute of their video on MTV the other morning and my first response was: "Oh good lord a postal service clone band..........really?" Then I promptly changed the channel.

P.S. I think Deathcab is one of the most mediocre bands on the planet. Kind of like Built to Spill without the talent. Bring the hate people. I welcome it.

scott rated this an A on October 08, 2009:

ok, first of all i dig this single... untill i realized it wasnt ben gibbard...mark (who commented above) is a fucking retard for thinking this doesnt sound EXACTLY like the postal service...if you dont realize this guy is blatantly ripping off postal service then you have no ears and i pity you.....P.S. fuck you and everything you stand for

vivian. rated this a D on October 08, 2009:

finally listened to this dude and i definitely don't think he sounds EXACTLY like postal service... a bit too light. nonetheless, it seems obvious that postal service were an influence... but fine, i can see maybe why some people would like owl city's cheezy ass.

but to say, "I don't know how you can say Owl City is a rip-off Postal Service. They sound completely different. Just because they're both electronic doesn't mean they're the same... I think Owl City is highly original. I've never heard anything like it."

COMPLETELY different? that's a bit of a stretch. you've never heard ANYTHING like it? THAT is just sheer insanity. any way you swing it -- comparisons to postal service or not -- that is just ridiculous. it's damn near possible to make ANYTHING sound original these days, much less pop music. never hearing anything as poppy as this = you like, never listen to music.

Redefine Fan 324 rated this an A on October 08, 2009:

There way better than Postal Service. Postal Service is a cheap rip off of Owl City. Now look who is more popular

Garrett rated this an A on October 08, 2009:

Owl City has way more technical loops and synths. It is insane how many sounds are stacked. I am a Postal Service fan but I would have to say Owl City did a better job.

John Crayton rated this an A on October 08, 2009:

Yeah the lyrics are simple but they are fun. Perfect for younger listers. Owl city is starting to pick up big time. Postal Service...meh.

Bam rated this an F on October 09, 2009:

Anyone who doesn't hear a total rip-off of postal service in owl city must be deaf. Are you serious? The imitation in his vocals is what really bothers me the most. Whiny little fraud. Meaningless lyrics. Unbelievable. Electro Indie is one thing but this is something else. I get really angry when I hear him sing. Saying he's better than postal service now that's just plain retarded with a capital R. My blood boils when I read good things about him. Sure maybe he has musical talent but zero creativity of his own. Have fun listening to your knock-off versace bag, parrot mimic one of the most influential indie albums of all time. Sorry if I sound like a bitter old man, but I had to get that off my chest.

3okay rated this an A on October 09, 2009:

okay here we go guys. both sides are idiots okay. support for original owl city, personally, i think he sounds great and is good for keeping you in a good mood and the lyrics are highly poetical in the way he fits them together. however there is no doubt that he shares a similarity to the postal service. i dont like postal service as much, but there is a large similarity in music style to that of owl city. now back on the side of owl city, u cant condemn someone for sounding like someone else, hell over 80% of singers sound like someone else, there is no way you can hate someone for that, and adam does a good job of trying to make his music sound unique. im not saying that owl city is better than postal service either though, its just that owl city fits the growing curve of music in young adult ears and postal service is more fitting for older people who were there to witness the debut of postal service. people who are 100% against owl city you are just plain wrong, and those of you 100% for owl city, well you are wrong also. he is not at either extremity but rather somewhere inbetween, and i believe the scale is slightly tipped in favor of owl city. so whoever else posts please dont make it some mindless drivel without considering both sides of the argument or u will look like a dumbass for sharing a one sided argument.

3okay rated this an A on October 09, 2009:

for instance. bam you are a dumbass. if u cant hear the difference you must be deaf. all rappers sound similar but i can hear the uniqueness in each one, so its your fault if you cant hear the difference based on your own bias to a situation, and you cant blame anybody else if you cant even control yourself. "COMPLETELY different? that's a bit of a stretch. you've never heard ANYTHING like it? THAT is just sheer insanity. any way you swing it -- comparisons to postal service or not -- that is just ridiculous. it's damn near possible to make ANYTHING sound original these days, much less pop music. never hearing anything as poppy as this = you like, never listen to music." okay so you just stated this, however you just condemned owl city for sounding like postal service. if you just admitted that its hard to find anything original then how can you put down just one band when many are guilty of your so called 'fraud'. and you know a lot of people actually like artists that have a similar tone... normally there isnt a huge debate over who is a rip off of whoever. seriously, some of you guys are just idiots.

vivian. rated this an A on October 10, 2009:

haha, apparently you cannot read 3okay, because you quoted numerous (i think three?) different people in your second response thinking they were different people.

bam rated this an A on October 10, 2009:

3okay or should i say dumbass, yeah I can hear the difference. Owl city sucks and postal service doesn't. His writing is for teenage girls. And yes many people do sound the same, but postal service is such a unique style that the rip-off his so plainly obvious in this case. And, yes there are rappers I despise too for being un-original. It's not the fact that he copied the music style, to be inspired by something is a lot different than attempting to make something that sounds exactly the same. Guess it doesn't matter though cause idiots like you believe he's good so he makes a lot of money and he wins.

rick rated this a B on October 11, 2009:

I got so excited when I first heard Fireflies on the radio because I thought I missed the Postal Service finally giving everyone what they want with a new album. I've got to say, it's not quite as good, but if we can't get new Postal Service I'll take the off-brand. Really don't care if it's a "rip-off" since TPS won't put more music out there.

Pacifist rated this an F on October 11, 2009:

Owl City's music makes me want to punch babies and drown kittens.... If you hate owl city based on his music, you should check out his facebook page. Total p*ssy with hint of creeper.

XZ rated this an F on October 13, 2009:

Quote from Him- "A lot of people liken Owl City to The Postal Service, and while that was never the intention or the initial concept of the project, I'm totally honored. I couldn't be more excited to see how big the realm of electronic music eventually becomes." He shouldn't be 'honored' since 'liken' is meant more as a derogative. The timbre, articulation and melodic choice is spot-on Ben Gibbard offensively such, perhaps slightly thinner and sheened from over-production with more obvious and cutesy lyrics. I'll spare going into the tempo, dynamic, structures and textures but suffice to say; This is the Postal Service in every way.

Even look at the oddities in the tracklisting alone;
- 'Hello Seattle' (where Ben Gibbard lives)
- 'Umbrella Beach' (Umbrella was a song from 'Life is full of possibilities' where Postal Service started via 'This is the Dream...'
- Even 'Dental care' at a glance looks and sounds like Dntel.

Does he know how 'big the realm of electronic music' is because this is just plain stealing, marketing, promoting and cashing in on a dishonest musical personality. But the kids don't care, they're still faking it too.

XZ rated this an F on October 13, 2009:

... Surprise! Surprise! Didn't know his first single release was called, 'Maybe I'm Dreaming' close enough to the First unofficial Postal Service Song Title; ' The Is The Dream of Evan And Chan' Mentioned in tracklisting coincidences above. Ugh!

bam rated this an F on October 13, 2009:

Thank you XZ. I appreciate the detailed comment with examples. He's a fraud and quite frankly it really upsets me. Not fair to other musicians who have the integrity not to do the same thing. It's just not cool - breaking the rules in a classless way. Like sleeping with your best friend's girlfriend or something. Maybe he just doesn't know any better. There are a million artists out there that could just bite the postal service too but choose not to out of respect for the art and artist.

bam-bam rated this an F on October 13, 2009:

Dear Owl City Fans, You poor lost souls...I understand how difficult it must be to live in an age where orginality is the last thing your "musicians" are vying for. I pity you, the desperate and tone deaf, for having only this pathetic knock off to look up to when we 20-somethings were honored with Postal Service- a band and an album that some say defined our generation. Like many others i too was deeply angered, seething- i would say, when i first heard this phony-flash-in-the-pan moron was getting even the slightest amount of recognition for what he should have been sued for. But there has to be someone to comfort the emotionally weak,the lonely depraved teenager- to sing them out of scraping up their wrists with a paper clip because that super cute boy at school like totally twittered some lame gossip about them that so wasn't true. I get it, go cry into a pair of skinny jeans and put that Owl City album on repeat. And when your done you can totally fbook the lead singer and tell him how cute his sweater is. Yeah, that'll show them all.

yoshi99 rated this an F on October 13, 2009:

I mistakenly bought this album after hearing "Fireflies" on the radio. I assumed this was a new Postal Service album, or at least a spinoff from some of the band members. Then I realize it's just a knock-off from some Christian dude (I guess I glossed over that section in the bible where it's OK to blatantly rip off other folks' music to make a buck). I have to agree with bam -- Owl City is a cheap knock off, which seems to be de rigeur these days on the contemporary music scene. Sheesh, people, come up with your own style. After all, aren't you supposed to be inspired by God? Is a knock off the best the big guy has to offer? Really?

DB rated this a C on October 16, 2009:

I will come back to this page just to read the comments because they are hilarious. I am a producer and have been writing synth music for 17 years. My review is as follows:

1. This guy is hugely influenced by the Postal Service, but happier and with more auto-tune
2. Owl City does know how to program synths and is good at vocal effects, so even if it's a copy he knows musically what he is doing (which also leads me to believe he studied the Postal Service).
3. I almost blame the Postal Service for this since they have not done a new album.
4. Owl City makes my life easier because happy music must be okay to do again (I haven’t felt comfortable doing happy music since 1988).

One last comment:
There is no real way to know if this guys voice is better than Ben since this guy uses auto-tune. Auto-tune makes it impossible to do a true comparison. I'm not saying it's bad to use auto-tune, I am just saying it makes it impossible to tell if he has better pitch than anyone else.

nick from tucson rated this an F on October 20, 2009:

Owl city blows, dude is a FUCKIN' HACK. Good for whats his name for getting famous off ur dumb asses but its still frustrating to watch some pussy completely emulate another artist and then become more successful. Wheres the justice in this industry? (from vanilla twilight by Owl City)... "the spaces between my fingers is right where yours fit perfectly" ? come on! first off all that is just about the most boring way you could express that, but also it is just a dumbed down version of a postal service line (from such great heights)..."the freckles in our eyes are mirror images and when we kiss they're perfectly aligned" its got the same message practically the same imagery but he ingeniously changed the body part and left out all creativity. come on people boycott this piece of shit. OWL CITY STINKS

travis rated this an F on October 21, 2009:

i listened to the songs on myspace and i was completely shocked. this.....guy......is......trying.....to......be........POSTAL SERVICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

shame shame shame

melalcomboygirl rated this a B on October 21, 2009:

You people are stupid. The best comment on here is from 3okay. Just because they are similar doesnt mean he is a fraud. his music is good. Postal Service music is good. they are similar. HIs lyrics are inspired by his insomnia, which makes it unique!! And whatever people say, he has good melody, and if you stop concentrating on the similarities and disliking it and just listen, i think a lot of these people would like his music. You don't have to like the artist's ways to like his music. a song really shouldn't make people so angry. if it's so bad, just don't listen to it. youre not impressing people by writing how much you hate it when you could be doing something much more useful

dont care rated this a D on October 23, 2009:

IT REMINDS ME OF JACK'S MANNEQUIN!

anooo rated this an A on October 27, 2009:

how come you're all sooooooo ignorant? all of you....?.... it's quite amazing. all of you should hold hands while jumping into the grand canyon.... seriously.... you're all fucking idiots.

Dman rated this an A on October 28, 2009:

Fuck owl city. I heated 'fireflys' on the radio and it sucked cock. worse band ever.

Micah rated this a C on October 29, 2009:

Fuck The Postal Service, they ripped of Death Cab.

but honestly, Owl City is just a cheesy version of Postal Service.

Still, most of you people sound like you're afraid he's some kind of threat to good music. These kind of bands have always existed. Postal Service will last.

I mean he doesn't JUST sound like the postal service. Ever hear Hellogoodbye or The Format? It's that whole style too. A lot of music sounds the same so get over it. All you smart people with impeccable taste shouldn't care just live and let live.

jsmith rated this an F on October 30, 2009:

Postal Service is Death Cab they can't have ripped it off. Anoo, everyone is ignorant? Because we're arguing? because we like it? Don't like it? So all of us haters and lovers of owl city should just commit mass suicide. Great image obviously, but I don't get it. It's fun to anonymously dis each other on the internet. So we're all just big losers that should die, you included because you also wrote hateful things on this wonderful comment area on a music review blog? Anyway I've got a lot of other comment areas to get to and people to hate on before the day's done so I'm done wasting my time here.

don\'t have one rated this an F on November 01, 2009:

i don't like owl city period, i believe the he is a huge knock off TPS, and is it just me, or are you guys finding his lyrics in songs you've already heard before just rephrased, expressed defferently?

Nijel rated this a C on November 03, 2009:

This review is spot on. I thought the rating was a little harsh.

But you know the real reason why we don't like this CD? it's just the next generation's music. We can easily see the flaws, but to the kids getting into it, this is their first exposure to this kind of music.

I'm sure there were people who looked at the postal service as a rip off the alternative/dance bands of the 80's. they just didn't get what we liked about it.

and we just don't get this!

Billy rated this an A on November 03, 2009:

Every band is a rip off of someone else....it is called INFLUENCES....anyone who uses that as a basis for a review is either:

A) A douch bag with no talent of their own.
B) Arrogant enough to think their opinion matters.

Hey Ryan:

When you and your buddies ALL start saying that you have to be different to be cool......you all actual become the SAME!! Think about that one you loser!!

Joe rated this an F on November 03, 2009:

No little billy it's missing little things called "creativity" and "originality". A rip-off is different than an influence. It's like a thief vs. an apprentice. Duh!

brian fucking okum rated this a D on November 04, 2009:

First off:
LOL
LO fucking L.
I almost, almost thought I was going to give this band props for their catchy tune, and then, and then well I came to my senses. I also took notice of their blindly faithful fanbase. Not sounding like The Postal Service?
The first time I heard "Fireflies" on the radio all I thought to myself was: "Hmm, this is fucked up, this is definitely The Postal Service but why do they all of a sudden suck so bad lyrically."
It's not poetry, it's called ear candy. And it sucks too. As for the melodies, I don't care how many more Owl City stacked than TPS, it has no meaning, no real purpose, it's just an attention catcher.
Point made.

brian fucking okum rated this a D on November 04, 2009:

I suppose secondly...
This is not a matter of disagreeing generations man. Sure Death Cab and TPS got inspiration from some bands somewhere, but they didn't blatantly rip them off. AND EVEN HAD THEY, Death Cab and TPS had real purpose in their lyrics and intended to use strung together melodies to back up the tone, it wasn't a dull compilation of garbage... such as Owl City

undefined rated this an F on November 05, 2009:

Redfine, you are an IDIOT. How the fuck could the Postal Service rip off Owl City when Owl City didn't even exist until 6 years later? Dumbass.

redefine rated this a C on November 05, 2009:

what the heck UNDEFINED... can you read? where does anyone say that the postal service ripped off owl city? isn't it saying the opposite -- that owl city ripped off the postal service -- just about everywhere? W T F. mind-boggling, truly.

another guy rated this an F on November 06, 2009:

Redefine Fan 324 rated this an A on October 08, 2009:
There way better than Postal Service. Postal Service is a cheap rip off of Owl City. Now look who is more popular

redefine pound2 you are a fucktard. shut up

Andy rated this a C on November 10, 2009:

Oh god shitloads of diehard postal service fans in these posts. Owl City is pretty good, but most of the songs sound waay too similar and the lyrics can get stomach churning after too long.

Those of you saying he completely ripped off TPS is lol worthy though, a lot of you just sound angry at him for sounding similar and being popular.

Stevie rated this an A on November 11, 2009:

'Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door'. I have liked TPS for years but love Owl City. I noticed similar vocal quality and genre but OC feels fresh and different to me. Sales indicate that this is indeed the 'better mousetrap'.
I would also venture a guess that if TPS had ever put out a pound1 song its fans would have turned on them and called it a sellout piece of garbage no matter what it actually was. You see it happening already to Deathcab. Mainstream just isn't cool, man.

mouse man rated this a D on November 11, 2009:

ur all cock suckers. what the fuck about a mousetrap? owl citys mouse trap is worse tho but its catching more mice... wierd.

Redefine Fan 324 rated this an F on November 11, 2009:

...dont be another mouse for the owl

James-Kond rated this a D on November 12, 2009:

I have listened (and loved) way to much The Postal Service song and my only attempt trying to listen to Owl City ended me in laughter, of the FUCKING BAD LYRICS, seriously? Can this guy write one logical sentence? fuuuuuuuuuck. TPC might be the only group I listen to for it's lyrics and this Owl City guy just blows at that level. Also those beats are stolen y'all.. Oh and about that whole 'new generation' shit I'm 16 and I fucking hate this guy, it even came on Dutch radio and I had to step out of the shower to turn that fucking song off.

Dustygazongaz rated this an F on November 14, 2009:

Owl city and postal service both suck but Owl City sucks waaaaaaay worse. Autotune is used when someone can't sing....see? I love thEse varying opinions but I gotta agree with the people way say this guys a rip off...cuz he is...and if all the 15 year olds of the world want to defend this trash then I fear for our future....

fender7083 rated this a B on November 15, 2009:

I like own city! The postal service sounds ok, but his band Death cab for cutie is way better. Amazing poetic lyrics in song such a "i'll follow you into the dark" is pure art. Owl city has this happy, upbeat tecno thing that sound decent. His best song is "The saltwater room" which has little techno and a nice guitar intro. It also features some good female vocals that duets with young,

hater rated this an F on November 15, 2009:

Owl City is a god damn rip off and not original. PURE CRAP.

OWL CITY SUCKS rated this an F on November 15, 2009:

My farts sound better than this pathetic sissy sounding bullshite. Its straight up torture listening to this crappola. F -

Cina rated this an A on November 16, 2009:

Thank you for pointing out the obvious about Owl City. I saw him live before they were big and was definitely underwhelmed. While his music is mediocre, the live performance is a joke. A laptop is not an instrument.
Owl City is like the Twilight of the music industry: Cheesy, overdone, yet somehow loved passionately by every soulless teenager I know.

dont hate rated this an A on November 18, 2009:

yo. owl city is the shit fo real. his lyrics are uber-intelligent and his voice is like magic. you haters dont know a genius from a lump on ur testicle. i give this album an A- at worst! Ah skeet skeet.

Ben Watson rated this an A on November 19, 2009:

I gave this an A because it seems to me that this guy is just pumping out garbage to make a bunch of money, which I can respect. I work 8 hours a day in an office, and I'm bored as hell. I'm about to go home and write some stupid bullshit music for high school girls and make a ton of cash. He better be joking, because this shit is hilarious. I mean, c'mon - 1,000 hugs from 10,000 lightning bugs? That's the funniest thing I've heard in a long time. However, if this guy is being serious, and wants to be taken seriously as an artist, then this CD gets an F-. I can respect ripping off a bunch of little girls of their parents money, but I can't respect this unless it's a total joke. I think it is though; nobody sounds that much like a douche on purpose.

haha rated this a C on November 20, 2009:

kudos to ben watson for funniest response so far.

Sin Silver rated this an F on November 20, 2009:

Highly unoriginal yet frighteningly popular. I just checked this dumb-dumb out to see what all the fuss was about. Jeez Louise I really think Armageddon is coming if this shite is popular

jazp rated this an A on November 26, 2009:

No matter how much Adam Young denies that Postal Service/Ben Gibbard is not an influence to him, is bull crap. Stop denying kid. Definitely a ripp off but worthy of my ears.

sarah d. rated this an F on November 27, 2009:

owl city sucks the fact u have heard nothing like it is no reason to like it. owl city S U C K S A S S its a the postal service without talent.

Bob rated this an F on November 28, 2009:

I didn't think electronic music could get any lamer than Postal Service until I heard Owl City. This crap makes Ben Gibbard look like a musical genius by comparison.

somebody rated this an A on December 03, 2009:

I don't think people should make personal attacks at Adam Young because how many of us could ever compose anything like that?

I personally think he sounds good (it would be nice to hear a song without a vocoder effect though) ,is a great producer and has a fantastic piano playing style in the pieces throughout his music.
If you don't like Owl City perhaps check out his other project Port Blue... It's instrumental and very relaxing.

Redefine Fan 324 rated this an A on December 06, 2009:

wow, originality is an endangered species in music these days. its nice to know that this guy has made his career off of other artists' lack of prolificacy. oh well! the 2000's suck anyways!

edloe rated this a D on December 06, 2009:

How the hell can someone say that his lyrics are original and poetic? they are idiotic and absolutely retarded.
"Cause I'd get a thousand hugs
From ten thousand lightening bugs
As they tried to teach me how to dance.
A foxtrot above my head,
A sock-hop beneath my bed,
The disco ball is just hanging by a thread."
who could consider that strong lyrics?

ELLIE rated this a D on December 13, 2009:

FROM AN INTERVIEW W/ ADAM YOUNG: Yeah. Having really dug into what the Postal Service did and what they were about, I think what they did was so brilliant. I think that record left everyone asking, “What are they going to do next?” Since no one has done anything quite like it, it’s almost like everyone is naturally saying this is the next step — maybe that’s me, maybe that’s this record. I have often asked myself what would they have done, had they come out with another record."

I don't think anyone can argue that he isn't intentionally copying TPS now. I suppose I don't really have a problem with him imitating TPS and making it more radio friendly. I mean, didn't Coldplay do the same thing to Radiohead?

Jeremy rated this an A on December 15, 2009:

All you guys are pathetic. It sounds just like Postal Service. Stop making these excuses for these untalented artist who think no one will notice the diiference. You're all way to impressionable. I;m out of words. You people have no clue in the art of music. Go listen to Lady Gaga you morons. My generation has no fucking clue. Stop listening to music you reatards, you've all been dumbed down. Pricks.

lol, rated this a D on December 15, 2009:

@jeremy - i like how angry you are despite the fact that most of the people posting AGREE with you.

Me rated this a B on December 20, 2009:

Theyre music is very similar but the fact is :theyre NOT the same. Its not like Owl City copy and pasted all of TPS songs and added his own lyrics and you people are making such a big deal out of it. His Style is DEFINITELY similar to TPS. In the review, it said it was the same rhythm on loop.
Go listen to poker face and tell me there isnt a loop and the fact was Poker Face is a great hit (i don't know how)
Even if Adam sounds like Ben, can u blame him? if he was born that way u can't criticize him to "get a new voice"
I won't deny their music sounds the same but currently Owl City is NOW and TPS was 5 years ago.
The lyrics in his songs are in a soft meaning and are in NO way strong and meant to be gentle and not really to be take to seriously.Just nice to listen. I am also a huge fan of TPS and actually I'm rather happy OC came along and make it seem like nostalgia.
If you all still believe he is a rip-off,
then simply don't listen to his music.Just forget abt him and move on with your life instead of posting hate messages everyday.
Overall,they kinda ARE ripping off TPS now
but at the start werent intentionally doing it.
They still have their own original songs and its not like he is planning to clone himself as the next TPS cause he is not.
So just stop making a big deal out of it.
In a few months every1 who hated them would probably forget them while those who stick with him probably still will. End of Story.

Word rated this an F on December 21, 2009:

@Me - "They're" is a conjunction for "they are;" "their" is possesive, and "there" is an adverb.

keyty rated this an A on January 10, 2010:

OWL CITY is soooo awsome I almost craped myself when I heard theyr first song theyr better then evry other bands on teh planet!!
U peple tat hats OWL CITY need to go in a hole and stay away from us cool peeps!!!

Big E rated this a D on January 14, 2010:

Total Postal Service rip-off, no originality whatsoever!!

Nick rated this an A on January 16, 2010:

I couldnt possibly disagree more.
Owl city is a testament to the beauty and wonder of human creation.
He didnt rip off postal service. Just because his voice happens to be similar, and the click beats are similar doesnt mean he is ripping them off. Owl city is better anyways.

Stella rated this an F on January 24, 2010:

Listened to it a lot. Don't like it at all.

Sarah rated this a C on January 29, 2010:

Okay, so this is definitely a complete rip-off of the postal service. The kicker was "Hello Seattle." (Where I am from, and where Ben Gibbard will always be loved as a fabulous song writer no matter how "popular" or "mainstream" he gets.) But here we have a kid not even from the area singing about the Puget Sound as if its in his backyard. Hijacking a sound is one thing; to steal personal details like that, as well as lyrical content, is frankly a little bit creepy. But all that said, its clear the kid idolizes Ben and wants to be exactly like him-- I'm sure that could be considered a compliment in some weird way. I won't fail this album, seeing as though its ten times easier to listen to than the rest of the crap in the top 40. Besides, however schmarmy and cutesy and downright gimicky his lyrical content might be, I sorta believe the kid is sincere.

As for all you people "working at noncommercial radiostations and banning postal service because they are popular," you should be ashamed to call yourselves fans of music. Remember that terrible, evil band that had 49 top forty hits? Oh yeah. I think they were called The Beatles or something. You should probably ban them from your station for being horrible people and even worse musicians. Just because something is "indie" does not make it art. More often, it is self-expressive gimicky weird crap that people get off on because it gives them an unjustified superiority complex, when in reality, they just have terrible taste and are slaves to the immature opinions of their peers. Indie snobs are way often way bigger posers than Adam Young.




Ani rated this a C on February 01, 2010:

Okay...so his lyrics aren't deep or mesmerizing, but I don't see why we have to attack Adam Young. He seems like a nice guy who's just out to do his thing. So he's not a Julliard or a Berklee graduate, but he's definitely not as bad as Soulja Boy Tell 'Em. Yes, he's clearly inspired by The Postal Service. Artists are inspired by other artists. It's been that way forever. Nothing's new under the sun.
I've listened to Ocean Eyes and music-wise, it's not bad. I'd rather listen to this guy than Britney Spears,and we all know the garbage she puts out every time. Give Mr. Young a few years. He will evolve as an artist. He won't rely on TPS so much as he grows and finds his own signature sound. As for the saccharine lyrics? People seem to enjoy it, but I think he can do better.

Vivian rated this a C on February 01, 2010:

I'd rather listen to Britney Spears. Have you heard the album with "Toxic"? It rules!

Mitch rated this an A on February 23, 2010:

List of facts:

1. Owl City ripped off The Postal Service.
2. The Postal Service hasn't released an album for 7 years and obviously doesn't plan to.
3. The Postal Service is too indie to want to sue for money, let alone the fact they don't care since they're not doing anything anymore.
4. Therefore, Owl City really isn't doing anything wrong BY The Postal Service, Owl City just makes crap lyrics and autotunes, avoid them because of that.

tj rated this an A on February 23, 2010:

Ok well....more people have heard of owl city then the postal service an idc how u cut it everyone just makes music to go mainstream an gett rich lyrics are not bad I really liked this cd had a really mellowt vibe I just vibed to it after I worked out to relax an liked the way it played look u kids can come on here an bash him an say all you want bout ur other bands but in the grand scheme of things ur word an hate means nothing not ever artist has to be serious this guys doin what he loves an imo he's pretty damn good so I give this an A an owl city that boi gonna keep doin his thing. An ill keep buyen cuz I like the way he sounds an his vibed out tone

nic rated this an A on March 18, 2010:

There's a difference between being influenced by someone and completely RIPPING THEM THE FUCK OFF. This guy is a talentless hack. His beats are no where near as melodic or complex as DNTEL, and his lyrics sound like a 5 year-old-wrote them, opposed to Gibbard, who writes some of the most poetic shit of our time.

And if you don't know who DNTEL or Gibbard is, then look into Postal Service -- the duo who this piece of cheesly shit, American Idol-esque hack RIPPED OFF>

John Doe rated this an F on March 27, 2010:

Holy shit I listen to metal and I don't give two shits about any of this soft electro shit. Fuck Owl City, they make me fuckin hurl, go listen to some Run Dmc or DmX or some shit. Goddamn if you listen to this shit you're probably 12-16 years old and smoke pot like a mofo, Jesus all the fuckin hippie girls fuckin masturbate to this shit and plus all the Flamin Fairry bitches out thre.

xdon\'tfeedthetrollsx rated this a B on April 18, 2010:

1. The lyrics aren't fabulous...but neither are they terrible.

2. Catchy. Good lord, catchy.

3. I honestly don't hear the whole "Postal Service Rip-Off" thing. I just don't. Similar style? Sure. "RIPPING THEM THE FUCK OFF"? Sorry, Gibbard-ites...no.

4. I don't hear the supposed drum loop repetition, either...

5. "Indie" does not automatically mean "awesome".

yeah. rated this an A on September 01, 2010:

I am getting so annoyed with bad reviews of Owl City and/or people complaining about him because...

a) I actually went out and listened to the Postal Service after I started liking Owl City because of the whole "rip-off" thing, and I honestly just don't hear it. Sure, they're both electronic, but TPS is...darker. Owl City is happy and upbeat. It's just different. I'm not saying either one is better than they other, because that's an opinion, but they are very different.

b) TPS is not coming out with another album! Get over it! Honestly! Maybe Owl City sounds a bit like them, but why does it matter? It's not like they're competing or anything. Owl City being popular isn't going to wreck the sales of a new Postal Service album, because there isn't one coming out.

c) It just gets tiring after a while of saying this...but just shut up! It obviously doesn't matter what you say! Stop wasting you time trashing a guy that's popular! Even if you don't like him, his fans (like me) will still love him. It's quite pathetic, really, and just proves that you have no life. So just get over it and yourselves because you trashing him isn't going to make a difference.

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