Owl City - Live From Los Angeles

Live albums... A pointless release or something special that fans will really enjoy and appreciate? If you're not a diehard fan do you care about a live release? If you've never gotten to see a band in concert, is the live album good enough? I own a couple of live albums and have some bootleg live recordings in my iTunes library. Mostly bands I love (Mxpx, Starflyer 59, Five Iron Frenzy), but largely the live album just doesn't work for me. Rarely is the performance or recording good enough to justify spending the money. And the album never fully captures the live experience so I feel like if I've never seen the band live that the album will make up for it.

Insert Owl City's Live From LA. I actually caught this tour when it came through DC and enjoyed it for the most part. The best part of the live album is that it gives me a reference for all the songs they played that I didn't know but really enjoyed.

The recording itself is excellent, which isn't surprising seen as there's a dvd that goes along with the album. I love the new intro to Fireflies and the live performance gives the songs an extra shot of energy.

But more than anything the album solidifies how good a band Owl City is and how solid a musician Adam Young is. No studio tricks, no multi-tracked anything. The songs sound right on point and Young's vocal's never waiver. It reenforces how much I like Owl City.

No new songs but a solid live album all around and something fans of Owl City will want to pick up.