Owl City is the name of a project formed in early 2007 consisting of one member, Adam Young. Young started out making music in his parents' basement,[3] which he claims is a result of his insomnia.
Among Young's influences are disco and European electronic music.[4] 1980s synthpop and New Wave music is also heard in Owl City's sound.
Owl City found early popularity through its own MySpace profile, which has received more than 6 million plays on tracks, such as "Hello Seattle".[5] Young is joined by Breanne Duren on several tracks; the most noted of which being "The Saltwater Room."
Relient K vocalist Matt Thiessen has also collaborated with Owl City on several tracks.
Owl City's first two records were released while Young was unsigned.[5] In early 2009, music industry website "Crazed Hits" leaked that Owl City signed with the major label, Universal Republic.[6]
Owl City is currently on tour with The Scene Aesthetic and Brooke Waggoner. In January-February of 2010 he will tour with contemporarysynthpop singer Lights and Christian rock band Deas Vail.
Yeah, I missed them in September for their NY show (sucks!) but I will try to catch them next time around. I say them... but it seems this band is just one guy- Adam Young.
As for the story behind this particular song- Fireflies:
"Fireflies" is a 2009 single by Owl City, a project consisting of synthpop artist Adam Young. The song is from the album Ocean Eyes. Relient K vocalist Matt Thiessen is featured as a guest vocalist.
Video
The music video features Adam Young playing the song on his synthesizer in a toy-filled bedroom, where most of the toys come to life. It was directed by Steve Hoover.[1]The video had an exclusive premiere on MySpace, but was leaked onto Dailymotion and YouTube hours earlier.
Charts
The song has reached number 38 on Billboard's Rock Songs Chart, number 27 on Alternative Songs, and number five on Digital Songs chart as of October 8, 2009. Currently the single is at number 9 on the Billboard Hot 100,[2] and number 23 on the Canadian Hot 100. As of October 19 2009, Fireflies has peaked at number 1 on the iTunes Top Songs charts. Much of the success of Fireflies is due to its release as a Discovery Download of the Week on iTunes.
Chart performance
| Chart (2009) | Peak position[3] |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 9 |
| U.S. Billboard Alternative Songs | 27 |
| Canadian Hot 100 | 23 |