Beautiful Mystery
Beautiful Mystery (Owl City/Adam Young)
This track is a bit of an obscure one as it was never even released in the first place. But that does not stop it from being an earworm. A lot of Owl City's music makes me feel nostalgic even though the only song I would’ve heard when I was young would be Fireflies. They’ve just got this innocence and charm which is hard to fake. Sonically, they blend in acoustic and electric elements to create a one of a kind sound which is very clear from their first album itself. Adam is also an incredibly underrated musician. He holds his own at several instruments and even the production side of things. It’s amazing to imagine a kid in their parents basement writing and creating the most vivid music you’ve heard.
The song starts off with this square synth with an incredibly catchy melody, as we go on, the rhythm section becomes more prominent with hard hitting drums with other instruments creating a beautiful harmony over the melody we started out with. Before the verse, a lot of the synth parts take a back seat to provide more space to the strings and the vocals. Adam has always been amazing at using strings, he had been experimenting with them as early as his first release but really comes into his own by All Things Bright And Beautiful (his 2011 release) as he learns how to properly use them along with his instantly recognisable synths and guitars. The strings before the chorus send shivers down my spine as they build up to the chorus. This here is a really good use of dynamics as the much more energetic vocals kick in along with the punchy drums. The new synths also help create contrast between the verse and the chorus.
Musically the song remains mostly the same except a small instrumental section after the second chorus, creating anticipation for the final chorus and when it does eventually start, it’s a lot more intense, leading all the built up tension to an end. The song ends with the same string melody as we heard before the chorus. When the song ends, the melody ends like an old TV being turned off which is a nice touch.
Let's get to the lyrics now. There is no official commentary for this song so all these thoughts are my own. The song starts off by Adam stating that he finds beauty and mystery in the simple things. He never dresses flamboyantly usually, just a shirt and tie. He contrasts this to people who overdress, suggesting that they might be doing so as they have no mystery. The last line of the verse just ends off by saying “Oh beautiful mystery” which might mean that he finally found someone who values the mystery in simplicity as much as he does.
TW as I talk about suicide here:
The chorus suggests that Adam was going through a dark time in his life which made him consider suicide. He refers to this rough patch as a feather which he tells to fly by as this time he’s found a reason to live and is falling for the person. By “But I lose myself” I think they might mean that they are trying to accept the fact that these dark moments will return in their life. The second verse describes the person Adam has fallen for. He says that they love flowers in their hair and dress up like a ghost which could mean that they like vintage clothing. The rest of the verse describes how much they love them and how obsessed they are with their mystique. After this the chorus is repeated. Here they state that they are now finally ready to fly in the sky where they can be alone and at peace with their loved one. They also repeat “But I lose myself” here in this context they mean that they have accepted the fact that there will be bad moments in their life but this time they have their loved one to guide them through the occasional storms.
Like the lyrics, the song is amazing in its simplicity. It's a tale about finding a person similar to you and cherishing the time you have with them. There aren’t any interesting theoretical concepts or something ground-breaking here but many simple concepts like just using dynamics to build up anticipation and energy for the chorus.
Thanks a lot for reading and have an amazing day!
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