Pop band OneRepublic released its fourth album Oh My My on Oct. 5.
The album does an exceptional job of creating a solid blend of different genres into a single album. It includes sounds ranging from a synth to ballads and acoustics while staying true to their original field of pop.
The album opens with “Let’s Hurt Tonight,” which features an acoustic guitar, bass and powerful chorus. The song builds to a chorus that is mainly filled with powerful piano and lead singer Ryan Tedder’s voice.
The third song is “Oh My My.” Named after the album, it is reminiscent of a Maroon 5 song. The chorus is catchy and easily induces incessant head bobbing. The heavy electronic feel continues for the next two songs. Electronic sounds seem to be making their way into more and more of OneRepublic’s song style.
The sixth song is my personal favorite. A piano and a bass drum introduce Tedder’s voice similar to the opening song. “Choke” is an emotional song, heavily driven by its genuine lyrics. The words, “I keep your picture of you on the wall, of you on the wall/And choke on the memories” dominate the chorus. It boasts a backup choir and solidifies a gospel passionate feel.
Rounding out the album is the song “Wherever I Go.” As one of the early released singles listeners will recognize this song from various popular stations. It embodies a simple pulse that drives the song forward. This song resembles everything that has made OneRepublic popular in their past albums, so it is no surprise why they released it early.
While listening to the album, I kept attributing the sound of the song to other artists like Sam Smith, Twenty-One Pilots, Maroon 5 and Of Monsters and Men. While OneRepublic did a great job of successfully testing the waters and producing quality songs that each induce a different sound, they lack originality. I am not sure if this is a positive or negative attribute to their method of creating music.
It is worthy to note that the difference in sounds throughout adds a nice touch and gives each song a unique feel. It is not likely that the audience will forget the song has changed and they are listening to something else.
OneRepublic’s Oh My My shows off its capability to produce a variety of sounds outside their usual bubble of pop and rock. While they succeeded in leaving their comfort zone they failed to create a feel different from other currently popular artists.
