Mercury Ballroom // September 22
You would not believe your eyes
Last night, while American electronic pop performer Adam Young of Owl City was preparing to take the stage at Louisville Kentucky’s legendary Mercury Ballroom, hundreds of fans were lining up around the building in anticipation for the show. Owl City, a project of Young’s formed in 2007 in Minnesota, has been touring the US on his To the Moon Tour in promotion of his new album, Coco Moon.
But first, a performance from
AUGUSTANA
On this tour, Owl City was accompanied by Dan Layus, the lead vocalist, lyricists and last remaining member of the rock band, Augustana. Though he still tours under the name Augustana at times, Layus has been successful as a solo artists as well, releasing his first solo album in 2016. Since then, he has consistently performed and toured with an array of artists.
He followed this fresh new melody with half a dozen songs that had the crowd absolutely captivated, leading myself and many onlookers to believe there were a number of fans there who were just as excited to see this one-man band. The piano complimented his warm, yet raspy emotional tone perfectly. When he played the opening not of Augustana’s hit song, “Boston,” phones and hands went up to either capture the moment or show their excitement and emotion. Layus performed one more song for the audience, “Tomorrow,” and I could tell they wanted more as he gracefully exited the stage.
The doors opened and the crowd collectively rushed inside, taking their places anywhere they could in order to get the best view of the stage they could. Layus took the stage, containing just a piano and a seat. The lack of elaborate staging, however, went unnoticed quickly as he began to perform his first song of the night, “Stand on My Own,” a single newly released in August, just a month before his performance in the music hall.
The Whimsical Wonders of Owl City
After Layus' set, it was finally time for Adam to take the stage. This singer/songwriter/player of many instruments gained popularity back in the nostalgic days of Myspace with his first big hit “Hello Seattle.” Shortly after, he found himself in the spotlight once again when he soared to not just fame, but also the Billboard Top 100 in 2009 with his now Diamond-Certified song “Fireflies,” a uniquely constructed dream-like melody recorded in the unfinished basement of his parent’s home, centering around his own struggle with insomnia. With over 9.4 million monthly listeners on Spotify, however, Young is not just a one-hit wonder, but an accomplished artist who consistently crafts compositions for his fans. “Compositions” is an appropriate word, as Young is widely known for his use of synths, drum loops, guitars and more in his songs, layering rhythms and beats in a way that transcends traditional music boundaries.
Owl City's set began with a song from the album where it all started for many fans, with Ocean Eyes' "Cave In." This dreamy performance had fans feeling nostalgic right off the bat, and I'm happy to say this was one of the most beautiful performances I've seen, and was absolutely one for the books. One reason being during the entire night, Young could be seen running across the stage from one instrument to another, all while singing, which is an accomplishment all on its own. There were a wide variety of songs performed throughout the night, from the albums Ocean Eyes, Maybe I'm Dreaming, and Of June, with the majority of the songs being from Coco Moon, unsurprisingly. The sixth full-length album highlights Young's faith more obviously than his other albums, with nearly every song referencing his faith. Adam demonstrated his storytelling talent through his songs that night, keeping the crowd engaged and excited to hear more, even after the generous one hour and fifteen minute set.
Coco moon crowd favorites:
Adam, Check Please
This is a special, rare occurrence in which Adam shares a part of his personal life with listeners through song. This song is about Young working hard at his very first job to achieve what he wanted out of life. It was a crowd favorite, providing a tune full of hope and life, even with unexpected curveballs. I'm sure many people in the crowd, myself included, could relate.
Kelly Time
The second song of the night was the 3rd song on Young's new album, a light, peppy song which Young has mastered the art of. This song is about the movie Castaway, with a quite interesting perspective from...you guessed it, Wilson the volleyball. While this song is also full of the sense of optimism, it also has a melancholy touch to it. As I watched the crowd, I could see them paying extra attention to this story of a song.
Vitamin Sea
The generous encore of the night was Vitamin Sea. Young knew what he was giving us when he said Coco Moon was going to be a unique album compared to what we were used to getting, and this song exemplifies that perfectly. With tropical vibes and a the soft, heartfelt bridge of this peppy song took listeners on an unexpected, yet welcome journey.
