Dream big and you can feel the magic
A Tribute to Adam Young
Aquarium is one of the first side projects created by Adam Young. The genre is specified as hip-hop, according to Aquarium's PureVolume profile. While very little is known about the project, it is estimated that it was created between 2003 and 2005.
Insect Airport is an early project created by Adam Young. The project, which is similar in tone to Port Blue, uses titles with the namesake of fruit to follow the connection to insects as described in the cleverly-constructed title.
The Floating Observatory is the one and only EP by Seagull Orchestra, a side project by Adam Young. The project is largely ambient and electronic.
Nuclear Suplex is a side project created by Adam Young in late 2006. The project, while comedic in nature, is inspired by wrestling, more specifically Mick Foley, one of Adam's favorite wrestlers.
Keehar is a project formed by Adam Young. The project, created in late 2006, follows the genre of experimental and instrumental rock and had its name inspired by the black-headed gull from one of Adam's favorite books entitled Watership Down.
Arctic is the first release by Adam Young under the Port Blue moniker. First existing as pre-production songs from a few years prior, this release is largely experimental and instrumental.
The second album by Adam Young under the Port Blue moniker, The Airship, is a concept album, loosely based on Kenneth Oppel's novel Airborne, minus the pirates. It details, simultaneously, a journey from Atlantic City to Sydney, Australia, in the meantime focusing on different parts of it's eponymous airship.
"Of June was my first release. I’d never written songs before but I knew I’d awakened a passion within myself when I began experimenting with synthesizers and recording equipment. I felt a new drive in my heart to chase my inspirations and it was such a powerful feeling, I knew I’d awakened a passion that would last a lifetime."
This third album by Adam Young under the Port Blue moniker continues the ambient styling of the previous records.
"This first full-length album I recorded was Maybe I’m Dreaming. I was living in my parent’s basement at the time, teaching myself how to record music and write songs. Eventually I was able to quit my day job at a factory and work on music full-time, and I remember thinking, “Wow, this feels like such a dream come true.”
"Ocean Eyes is the idea that there is more to someone than meets the eye. This was the first album I wrote with great purpose. I was at the start of my music career, I realized I had an audience and I wanted to introduce them to the real me. I wrote this album to give listeners a glimpse of my heart and soul."
"Long before Owl City was ever a spark of a flame, a lot of blue-collared working days were spent absentmindedly daydreaming about what would ultimately become this collection of songs. From the perfectionist musician's perspective, a song is never truly 'finished' but rather 'abandoned' and thus, after a lot of inspiration and reckless experimentation, I emerged from the basement with an 11 song record which I affectionately entitled, 'An Airplane Carried Me To Bed.'"
"This album is about the whimsical, curious things in life that cannot be explained. It’s about the imagery of raw emotions and daydreams. I wrote this album to capture what happens when I close my eyes and let my imagination carry me away. It’s about the storybook of ideas I think about when I kick back after a long day and let my mind drift."
"This EP is kind of a preview for the record coming out, and I wanted to make sure the four songs on the EP give sort of an accurate snapshot or a taste of what the new record is about."
"I decided to forge a new path with this album by collaborating with other creative minds. I pushed myself outside my comfort zone, ventured into new musical territory and learned an endless amount from other musicians which helped me greatly improve my craft. I was blessed to work with some of the most talented songwriters in some of the best studios around the world."
This 2013 EP by Adam Young is the most recently released installment under the Port Blue moniker. The EP itself is a collection of trance-like and EDM inspired instrumentals.
"This EP features acoustic versions of some of my favorite tracks from "The Midsummer Station."
"These songs are about fighting to see the beauty around you during the moments in life when you feel a little lost."
"I recorded this album while traveling around the world over the course of a year. I wrote songs in hotel rooms, on airplanes and backstage at music venues. The idea that today’s music production technology allows a songwriter to travel with a “symphony inside of a laptop” was what inspired me to create this album outside of the recording studio. Mobile Orchestra is about an artist who makes music wherever he goes, carrying a symphony in his backpack."
"If there is a historical event I wish I could've witnessed more than any other, it may well be the events that took place during July 16-24, 1969. For as long as I can remember, I've marveled at the story of the Apollo 11 mission, and the older I get, the more inspired I feel. This is my interpretation of what happened in July of 1969."
"We all know the story. A century has passed since Titanic found its final resting place in the North Atlantic, yet the story is still as stirring as ever. I wanted to capture feelings of excitement, premonition, and outright horror according to the way I imagine the story of the ill-fated luxury steamship. As such, this is my interpretation of the tragedy that shook the world."
"100,000 people welcomed Lindbergh as he landed in Paris after 33.5 hours in the air. Aviation history was made and Lindbergh became a hero. Such a daring feat has always stirred my imagination and I’ve often caught myself daydreaming about that first solo flight. Air travel is something I take for granted today, but things were very different in 1927. Lindbergh’s groundbreaking triumph, after several others had tried and failed, will continue to inspire me for years."
"By 1865, the highest peak was known as Mount Everest and it wasn’t until May 1953 that a beekeeper from New Zealand and a Nepalese Sherpa became the first to reach the summit. My interpretation of this astounding human feat is a collection of frozen, wind-burned, sun-bleached instrumentals that become more and more tattered and torn as you listen to them. Yet another example of man’s triumph despite insurmountable odds, the ascent of Everest remains a story that will always inspire me."
"In 1944, after years of planning, the Allies launched an invasion upon Nazi Germany and converged on the coast of France, beginning the reclamation of occupied Europe. In anticipation, Hitler fortified German defenses in hopes of countering the Allies and driving them back into the sea. What the Allies didn't know as they stepped onto the shores of Europe was that Hitler was waiting for them. The ensuing battle was gruesome. This is my interpretation of what occurred that day on Omaha Beach."
"In 1972, a chartered flight carrying 45 people, including a Uruguayan rugby team, crashed in the Andes in an incident known as the Andes Flight Disaster. In this score, I wanted to capture the emotions the survivors felt: fear, shock, horror, dread, dismay and anxiety — but at the end of a very grim story, lies an overwhelming sense of victory, relief, triumph and elation because of the inextinguishable and undying power of the human spirit."
"In 2005, Scottish electronic duo Boards of Canada released a music video featuring footage from Joe Kittinger’s famous parachute jump in 1960. That was my introduction to Project Excelsior, a series of high altitude jumps made by Kittinger from the edge of space with the purpose of testing parachute systems intended to be used by pilots ejecting from high altitude. This score is the way I imagine the tremendous bravery of one man who ascended to the edge of space, said a prayer, and jumped."
"One of my favorite stories is of Union General William Tecumseh Sherman and his famous march to the sea. 62,000 men marched toward Savannah, Georgia, living off the land and destroying everything in their path. Not long after Sherman captured Columbia, South Carolina, Lee surrendered and the war was over. Thus, this is my musical interpretation of the final march of the Civil War."
"Voyager 1 is a space probe launched by NASA in 1977 as part of the Voyager program to study the outer Solar System. Having operated for the past 39 years, the spacecraft still communicates and returns data to us, and as of 2016, it is the farthest manmade object from Earth. It was this breathtaking image that inspired me to create this score because it reminds me that life, as far as we know, is unique to our planet, and very fragile indeed."
"The southeastern face of Mount Rushmore in South Dakota’s Black Hills National Forest is the site of four gigantic carved sculptures depicting the faces of U.S. Presidents Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt. Led by sculptor Gutzon Borglum, work on the project began in 1927 and was completed in 1941. This is my interpretation of the construction of America’s 'Shrine of Democracy.'"
"In 1914, Ernest Shackleton and his crew sailed for the Antarctic in the vessel Endurance. Not long into their voyage, they encountered polar pack ice and progress slowed to a stop. The incredible resilience of the crew of the Endurance, and of Shackleton himself, is one of my favorite historical accounts because it serves as a reminder to us all: when things look bleakest, not all is lost."
Reel 1 includes previously released “All My Friends,” with the addition of two new tracks “Fiji Water” and “The 5th of July.” These deeply personal songs reflect “scenes” from Adam’s life and are just the beginning of the larger Cinematic story.
Reel 2 features "Not All Heroes Wear Capes," "Lucid Dream" and a brand new song called "Montana."
Reel 3 features news songs "Cloud Nine," "Be Brave" and "New York City."
About a year ago, I started working on a new Owl City album. I found myself writing about the magic of life…the amazing people I’ve met and the places that I’ve seen. Those songs make up my new 18 track album titled “Cinematic,” because just like the movies, life is full of magic.
"Coco Moon" is a very Owl City album. It is quirky. It is odd. It is unapologetically myself. I made an album that is exactly the way it was supposed to be, not an album that popular culture, or algorithms, or analytics, or anyone else on planet Earth told me to make. I wrote me. Average, ordinary, weird me. I started by imagining an album I wanted to listen to. The result is "Coco Moon."