Owl City- a look at some amazing music

Owl City is one of my favourite artists. Owl City is a one-man "band" that started in 2007 in the "electronica" genre.  I don't remember exactly when I discovered Owl City, but when I did, we became good friends.  He's kept me good company through late nights of school, cleaning the house, and whatever other random times I felt like a little Owl City.

So what's so awesome about Owl City?? It's fun!  I love his lyrics.  His faith in God encourages me.  He's used his struggles and turned it into creativity.  

Obviously everyone has different tastes in music, but I don't see how his music can't put a smile on your face!  It's catchy.  It's silly danceable.  His lyrics are so funny!  They are nonsensical and yet brilliant.  His play on words are so cool.  Sometimes though it's hard to know what song you want to listen to because the titles almost rarely have anything to do with what is in the song.  But his songs stick with you and attach themselves to memories.  One of the lines that has gotten stuck in my head and always reminds me of all the museums I went to in Europe is from "Fuzzy Blue Lights" - "If I was walking through a sad art gallery and you were driving through the night I'd feel rather alone and ill at ease beneath the brilliant showroom light."  And it took me such a long time to find what song that was from, because it has nothing to do with Fuzzy Blue Lights and the words "fuzzy," "blue," or "lights" never show up in the song anyways!  How did he get that title... Who knows?!  But that's another reason I love him.  From reading his blog he talks a lot about his struggles with serious insomnia.  I can't even imagine being SOO tired and not being able to sleep.  His music is a creative outpouring from his tired mind.  He can't sleep so he writes.  And some of what comes out makes it into his lyrics.
He has the greatest puns and word plays.  "The Bird and the Worm" plays on a phrase from one chorus to the next.  "For all my pals who live in the oceans and the seas, With friends like these, well, Who needs enemies?" The next chorus says: "For all my pals who live in the oceans and the seas, With fronds like these, well, Who needs anemones?"  There's so many other great ones with really funny word plays too (check out Dental Care, Rugs from Me to You, Honey and the Bee, Plant Life, Dementia, etc.)!

If you are looking for songs that explore deep themes or have some great message, look elsewhere.  Or maybe, just look deeper into his vision.  Do lyrics have to be deep to have a deep message?  The joy of life that he exudes, infuses itself into the emotion of his songs.  Maybe the message he explains in all his songs is that explosive creativity shows the imagination that God has put into His image bearers.

One of the most encouraging things I find about him, is despite the fame that he has found, he keeps his eyes fixed on Jesus.  As a fan, I wanted to read his blog posts to find out more about him; "get to know him."  And as I read, I was amazed by his "Christian" posts. His blog is littered with Bible verses, thoughts on subjects he is working through, and reminders for others reading his blog to look to God for everything.  These are a couple posts I found on his blog recently:

"I want this real bad:
Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:4-7 NLT)"

And this shorty, but goody:

"Reminder: Jesus is coming back."

So maybe next time you're looking for music to listen, give Owl City a try.

Here's one that's been stuck in my head recently!

Jeanette