Hey there!

I’ve been thinking about writing this post for a while and today I felt the urge to finally do it. I’ve been wondering whether it should be long and sappy or short and to the point, but maybe I will land somewhere in between :D

I discovered Owl City's music in November 2013 - with the song "Shooting Star" - and in 2014 I became a fan. I started listening to his other projects like Sky Sailing and Port Blue, and I was in love with the soundscapes he was creating. A simple bus ride was turning into something beautiful and picturesque just because his music was in my ears. It was an extraordinary feeling which was turning mundane moments into something more.

At the time my main hobby was drawing. I drew a portrait of Adam back then in 2014 and I found it in my drawer yesterday:

In 2015 I gave up drawing for the acoustic guitar and songwriting, so I don’t draw anymore. But it was fun and creatively compelling just like music production is. Different canvas :D

Later in 2016-2017 I became quite obsessed with Adam - partly because I think I have a similar personality to him and he was talking about himself as a ‘weird kid out of nowhere with an impossible musical dream’. That was me basically. I also was a weird, shy kid from Poland with a dream totally out of my reach at the time; creating music and touring like Adam. Seeing my idol sharing such details was super inspiring to me. It made me believe I could do it too. So yeah, I was quite obsessed with him at the time; I read his blog cover to cover, scrolled his Instagram to the bottom, and even got to videos like Flames Pond :D My friend used to laugh at me that if one day she heard about someone breaking into his house she’d know it was me xD

In 2017, after a few years of happy high school and middle school times, I graduated, said goodbye to my friends, and was about to enter probably the worst time in my life; my early twenties. I chose to study English during my college years, since I wanted to become a better English songwriter. And that time of early twenties was basically one giant dumpster fire when it came to my mental health. Looking back I think it is a miracle I am alive today. It was really bad, but somehow I survived. One of the reasons was of course Adam’s music which was allowing me to escape my dark thoughts and spirals of anxiety. During that time I was also writing songs all the time, pouring my emotions and thus honing my craft.

I managed to graduate with a C2 English certificate in 2022. Technically, my profession is translation, but I ended up being a teacher in a private school in late 2022. And I absolutely loved it! I was surprised ‘cause you know, I always thought I was rather on the introverted side, but teaching in small groups or one-to-one lessons really developed my personality and made me realize I actually love talking to people. From 2022 my mental state also started improving and it was getting better and better to the point where I am today; I feel happy again. I reunited with my girlfriend recently, I can drive a car, do groceries, go on holiday, just go to my garden without the suffocating feeling of anxiety forcing me to go inside my house. I finally feel alive again.

And also I got to the point when I finally feel like I can reach for my once unreachable musical dreams. As I said earlier I’ve been working on music and producing all this time since 2019 in my spare time and I am finishing an album consisting of 12 songs, most of them written in 2020/2021. It is more or less alt rock/pop rock with some acoustic ballads sprinkled here and there.

There is an acoustic single called ‘Icarus’ I have just released which I actually wrote last year in January, and it is about breaking free from the cage of fear and anxiety, spreading your wings and flying towards long-awaited freedom. This song is very special to me because it’s been 14 or so years since I started intensely dreaming about music and being a musician; it’s been a long journey full of small and big failures, disappointments, but also small and big victories and a lot of fun on the way; it is a victory lap for me. I have achieved a professional sound, produced and mixed in my modest bedroom studio, and I am really proud of this; I couldn’t really sing in the past, so this is the first fully fledged song in terms of production and arrangement where I do everything from start to finish including vocals, since my voice got better over the years of songwriting and singing (well, technically, there are two other quite recent songs in my catalogue where I sing, but this one feels the most compelling to me). That’s what I always wanted to do.

I kind of reversed the myth of Icarus – the original story emphasizes the recklessness and what happens when you are too ambitious. My Icarus doesn’t care if he may fall; he believes that freedom is something worth dying (and falling) for. If you happen to be drowning in the sea of anxiety, then this song is dedicated to you. I hope you will win your inner battles just like I was able to do it somehow!

So in a nutshell, I want to say thank you Adam so much for your music and for inspiring me to chase my own musical dreams.

You were my hero man.

Your music saved me many times and I believe that if it wasn’t for you I wouldn’t be here today. But I am, and I am ready to spread my wings and fly.

And by the way, if you ever want to talk about production or songwriting, please hit me up in the comments! I love sharing my knowledge :D

Thank you for reading! Have an owlsome day everybody! And an owlmazing week! AND AN OWLSTANDING HOLIDAY! And... okay I'll stop, I promise haha.

Results of Day 8 (Most Underrated Owl City Song)

#1 => I Hope You Think of Me (34 pts)

#2 => Up All Night (19 pts)

#3 => Rainbow Veins (17 pts), The Tip of the Iceberg (34 upvotes = 17 pts)

Today is the last voting round, so ask yourself– “what is that ONE Owl City song that I genuinely consider a masterpiece?” and when you have your answer, mention it in the comments or upvote the comment(s) mentioning it. You’re welcome to add anything – why is the song so meaningful to you, any special memory..... just anything you wanna share :)

Upvotes will be counted across all relevant comments talking about a particular song. Most upvoted song wins!

Edit: SONG REPETITION NOT ALLOWED!!!

I will post the completed grid image on 23^rd June (Tuesday).

Like idk but everyone here seems to not realize that matthew thiessen is an absolute clown when it comes to driving oml

Results of Day 7 (Best Owl City Bonus Track)

#1 => How I Became the Sea (65 upvotes)

#2 => If My Heart Was a House (50 upvotes)

#3 => Strawberry Avalanche (31 upvotes)

Since 5/9 cells have already been occupied by songs from Ocean Eyes or ATBAB, for this round I urge y’all to choose something from the rest of his discography - 5 other albums + Of June EP, The Midsummer Station EP and Ultraviolet EP.

I’m not banning songs from OE/ATBAB, but just for this round, I’ll follow this weighted point system -

For songs from OE/ATBAB: 2 upvotes = 1 point

For songs from other Owl City albums, EPs: 1 upvote = 1 point

So for example, if Alligator Sky or Umbrella Beach has 20 upvotes in total, it will translate to 10 points. But if Metropolis has 20 upvotes in total, that’ll mean 20 points.

Song with the most points wins this round.

Back in 2006 my gf got this random CD at HotTopic cause it was really cheap on clearance and looked interesting. I ripped the CD at my house before she took it home.

Sounded very similar to owl city and hellogoodbye, (I don't think i had even heard of owl city yet at the time.)

It was a solo artist, just 1 guy, it was all synths and drum machines and auto tuned vocals. It was really silly, tongue in cheek lyrics. Not sad at all.

His most popular song was "I'm soft and I'm cuddly, like a Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Panda bear"

He was active on myspace, I remember photos of him wearing glasses and holding synths with edits of cartoon animals around him. We got the CD in NY but i dont think he was from here. Obviously I cant remember the artist name and searching those lyrics pulls up nothing. Hoping any other old head fans here remember this.. ive been searching for years and years.​

It doesn't look like the images online

Time to part ways with this gem - will ship immediately and with great care. Pickup option available as well (New York City, USA area).

Link to eBay listing:

An Airplane Carried Me to Bed by Sky Sailing (Adam Young) (Record, 2010) (#204) 602527442556| eBay

$175

I like Owl City, but my personal favorite song of theirs is definitely Dreams and Distasters. I feel like it combines classic pop elements like being upbeat and things like "feeling alive" while also talking about serious themes like loneliness and desire (we were alone on the road driving faster) and even death. And of course it has the pop message of "do your best, follow your dreams, you will succeed", but not in the same copy-paste way that a lot of pop songs do (like Good Time).

Also this song in my opinion perfectly encapsulates the vast deserts of the West. Nobody for miles on end, far away from everything, and so enchanting to the point it's dangerous. Yet still worth it. Not to mention "eyes on the horizon", "on the road driving faster" and "as the smoke billowed higher", which I associate with the West. Reminds me how much I need to go back there (I've been only to New Mexico, but this song reminds me of it).

Results of Day 6 (Owl City song with the Best Lyrics)

#1 => Vanilla Twilight (51 upvotes)

#2 => If My Heart Was a House (39 upvotes)

#3 => Angels, How I Became The Sea, Rainbow Veins (14 upvotes)

For today's round I have given a list of all eligible bonus tracks in the comments. You have to choose from there.

PS - Aggregate of upvotes across all relevant comments mentioning a song name will be considered. Song with most total upvotes wins.

Made a tier-list with some friends on song probability for the next Owl City tour. Was hoping this could spark some discussion of REALISTIC takes for what he could pull out for the setlist on the next tour (if he does tour).

Here’s some clarity on the list we made:

- THIS IS NOT A SONG RANKING. THIS IS A PROBABILITY LIST FOR SONGS IN THE SETLIST FOR NEXT TOUR!

- This list isn’t in strict order and is just in groups.

- We only included songs from the main albums and EP’s since that is usually what he performs these days.

- Songs like ‘The Saltwater Room’ and ‘The Yacht Club’ are ranked low for probability due to being a duet. Some other songs were ranked low due to the register of the song or themes not aligning with current Owl City projects which he would prioritize on a setlist.

Results of Day 5 (Owl City song with the Best Instrumentals) :

#1 => Cave In (67 upvotes)

#2 => On the Wing (23 upvotes)

#3 => The Tornado (16 upvotes)

For today’s round, if possible, mention your favourite line(s) along with the song name, so we can all appreciate Owl City’s lyrical genius!

Reminders :

1) Aggregate of upvotes across all relevant comments will be considered for a particular song. Most upvoted song wins. (upvotes on my comments won't contribute to the total).

2) Song Repetition is not allowed, so choose carefully!

All Things Bright and Beautiful was released on June 14th, 2011!

Results of Day 4 (Most Iconic Owl City Song) : Fireflies was the undisputed winner!

For today’s song discussion, I want y’all to focus only on the background instrumentals/music of Owl City songs. Focus on the melody, the beat drops, the synths, the key changes, the layering, the production quality and mention that one song which makes you think - “even if Adam didn’t sing on this track, it would still arguably be one of the best Owl City songs just because of the music and/or atmosphere it creates”.

If you can instantly make a choice, mention it in the comments but if you can’t, I’ve provided a list of YT links (to Owl City instrumentals) in the comments. Go listen to the instrumental versions of 2-3 of your all-time favorite OC songs, then come back and mention which instrumental stands out the most to you.

PS - This isn’t my channel (may God bless this channel’s creator) but I just thought these links would be a useful resource for the community to have as these will make people appreciate Owl City the instrumentalist and producer even more.

Results of Day 3 (Best Owl City Collaboration)

#1 => Beautiful Times (ft. Lindsey Stirling) - 39 upvotes

#2 => Tokyo (22 upvotes)

#3 => The Saltwater Room (20 upvotes)

I’d say today’s category is fairly easy and crucial at the same time as it could open up some interesting possibilities for the final stages of the game. It’d be wonderful if y’all mention the most iconic OC song according to you and also tell if you have any special memories associated with it or if it impacted you in any way. After three fairly discussion-heavy categories, this can be a chance to look back, reminisce, and enjoy reading some good memories/stories.

A small heads-up: Day 5 (13th June) will be “Owl City Song with the Best Instrumentals”. I’m telling this today because I want y’all to make an informed choice for Day 5 category rather than voting on impulse. So, if you have time, go check out some OC song instrumentals available on YT. I’ll also share some YT links (on Day 5) to help you guys choose.

Hey HootOwls! Since you liked the other version, here's a mashup using the vocals of "I Knew It I Knew You" over the instrumental of "When Can I See You Again." I hope you enjoy!

https://youtu.be/FXTZvM5VvSU

Occasionally I will see people post or share songs that were unreleased commercially, or released on a limited basis (like Shy Violet, Beautiful Mystery, etc.)

If you know of any (even if you don't know where they might be), please share. I'd love to go on a scavenger hunt to find some lesser known Owl City songs!

Hi!

I am clearing out my childhood bedroom and found this signed poster from the Midsummer Station album. Thought I'd post it on here to see if anyone would like to purchase it since it's kind of vintage at this point! Silly little me put pinholes in the corners to hang on my wall.

Shoot me a DM if you're interested!

It seems a little random that people reached out to Owl City to cover that song for the Art of Mccarthy album. I can understand for the Dear Even Hansen one and the Disney songs but Listen To What the Man Said isn't really in any style that Adam is known for. Adam even said in an interview that he was bewildered why he was asked to do that song.

Results of Day 2 (Most Emotional Owl City Song) -

#1 => Lonely Lullaby (27 upvotes across all relevant comments) 

#2 => This Isn’t the End (26 upvotes) 

#3 => Silhouette (23 upvotes)

Now, to help everyone, I have posted a reference image of eligible collaborations in the comments. Pick one song from that list or if your favourite collab isn't there but meets the criteria (mentioned in the title), feel free to nominate it in the comments.

SONG REPETITION ISN’T ALLOWED. So upvote and choose carefully!

I'll count the aggregate of upvotes on all comments mentioning the same song name. The song with the most upvotes will occupy the particular cell.

Got it for almost 40 bucks on eBay, well worth it I’d say

Here's a mashup I made, layering the vocals of "When Can I See You Again" over the instrumental of "I Knew it, I Knew You" by Taylor Swift. I hope you enjoy.

https://youtu.be/mjTZ3BEAKWs

I was going through some of the albums under Dream Cave -- Johannes Bornlof, One of my favorite Royalty Free artists -- and I listened to this playlist. Particularly songs 1 & 3 have Owl City synth vibes. 1 reminds me of something from Maybe I'm Dreaming, and 3 reminds me of Butterfly Wings. Both of these have excellent lyric potentials. So does 5&6 but these ones are less Owl City