Wikipedia

Ocean Eyes Tour

The Ocean Eyes Tour is the first headlining concert tour by American electronica project Owl City, in support of his second studio album, Ocean Eyes (2009).

Ocean Eyes Tour
Tour by Owl City
North American Spring Promotional poster
Associated albumOcean Eyes
Start dateJanuary 19, 2010 (2010-01-19)
End dateNovember 13, 2010 (2010-11-13)
Legs6
No. of shows78
Owl City concert chronology

Background

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Owl City released his second studio album, Ocean Eyes on July 14, 2009. In October 2009, Owl City announced the Ocean Eyes Tour.[1] The first leg of the tour took place in the United States starting on January 20 to February 14, with Lights and Deas Vail serving as the opening acts.[2] Owl City then toured across Europe for the second leg of the tour from February to March 2010, with Lights joining him again.[3] Once the second leg of the tour finished, he joined Cobra Starship as the opening act on their Australian and New Zealand tour.[4]

Owl City returned to North America for the third leg of the tour from March to May 2010.[5] He later toured across Europe in May 2010 for four shows on the fourth leg of the tour.[6][7] Owl City briefly opened for Maroon 5 and John Mayer in August 2010,[8] before he travelled to Asia for three shows in November 2010 on the fifth leg of the tour.[7] He concluded the Ocean Eyes tour in Oceania that same month.[9]

Reception

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Critical response

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The Ocean Eyes Tour was met with mixed to positive feedback by critics. Scott Fryberger of Jesus Freak Hideout gave a positive response with the show at the McCain Auditorium. He wrote, "I was very impressed at Owl City's professionalism and enthusiasm. Though I didn't expect the group to not give their all, as they come off as really friendly and loving, it was refreshing to see that they gave it 100%."[10] The show at the Beaumont Club was met with mixed responses. Timothy Finn of Spin praised his live band writing, "thanks in large part to his band, which gave some of his songs a harder edge, and to one of his keyboard players, a woman who laid down some lovely harmonies."[2] Elke Mermis of The Pitch wrote, "Owl City played an unarguably tight, well-executed set." However, Mermis criticized Young's stage presence stating, "Young looked like, well, a kid in his southern Minnesota basement, pretending to be a rock star."[11]

Mikael Wood of the Los Angeles Times gave a mixed feedback of the concert at the Club Nokia. He praised the first half of the show noting, "The music was giddy and easy to follow but impressively detailed as well, with shifting layers of acoustic and electronic instruments. The technique worked in the background, though; like Owl City's music, this portion of the concert presented a slightly heightened rendition of reality." However, he was critical on the last half of the concert feeling that, "Young has already tired of the puppy-love juvenilia on Ocean Eyes."[12] Similarly, Teresa Jue of the Daily Bruin gave a mixed response for the concert stating, "Owl City's keyboard medleys were catchy... The ultimate problem though, was that many of Owl City's songs are rather repetitive, making for similar rhythms and instrumental qualities that were at times indistinguishable from each other."[13] Jesse Hughey of The Dallas Observer wrote a positive review for the Verizon Theatre concert. He wrote, "Owl City captures the turbulent, overblown emotions of that hormone-drenched age group perfectly."[14] Writing for The Star Tribune, Jon Bream was critical on the State Theatre concert, describing the stage presence of Young "to be on autopilot," noting that "Maybe it was the rare afternoon time. Maybe he's bored. Maybe he's ready to move on to new material. Maybe he's tired."[15]

Writing on the concert at the Ogden Theatre, The Denver Post gave a positive response noting, "Every song during the first half of the set was a fun, poppy, sometimes toe-tapping three-minute adventure with eclectic storytelling lyrics that ranged from a trip to the dentist to a walk through corn fields."[16] Another positive review came from Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian writing on the concert at Shepherd's Bush Empire. She wrote, "There isn't much variety to his song structures, which incline toward straightforward pop-rock, but there are little surprises tacked on: the xylophone tinkles that herald 'Air Traffic', an oddly erotic introduction to 'Cave In', in which the string duo down instruments and cavort around a drum, like violin-playing sprites."[17]

Commercial performance

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The first few shows of the tour sold well as the McCain Auditorium concert reportedly sold out.[10] The show at the Beaumont Club also sold out to a crowd of 1,200 people.[2] The Club Nokia show were just shy of 4,000 people in attendance.[18] His concert at the Diamond Ballroom had sold out, as well as many shows throughout February, with many tickets selling out.[19] The concert at the Aragon Ballroom also had a sold out crowd.[20] Another sold out show was at State Theatre.[15] In the UK, the show at Shepherd's Bush Empire also had a sold out crowd.[17]

Opening acts

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Setlist

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This set list is representative of the performance on January 20, 2010, at McCain Auditorium in Manhattan, Kansas. It does not represent the set list at all concerts for the duration of the tour.[10]

  1. "Umbrella Beach"
  2. "The Bird and the Worm"
  3. "Tip of the Iceberg"
  4. "On the Wing"
  5. "Air Traffic"
  6. "Fireflies"
  7. "Meteor Shower"
  8. "The Technicolor Phase"
  9. "The Saltwater Room"
  10. "Dental Care"
  11. "Hot Air Balloon"
  12. "Cave In"
  13. "Vanilla Twilight"
  14. "Hello Seattle"

Tour dates

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Date City Country Venue
North America[1][7]
January 19, 2010OmahaUnited StatesUniversity of Nebraska
January 20, 2010ManhattanMcCain Auditorium
January 21, 2010Kansas CityBeaumont Club
January 22, 2010Oklahoma CityDiamond Ballroom
January 24, 2010IndianapolisMurat Center
January 26, 2010MadisonMajestic Theatre
January 27, 2010Cincinnati20th Century Theatre
January 28, 2010ColumbusNewport Music Hall
January 29, 2010TowsonRecher Theatre
January 30, 2010NorfolkThe NorVa
February 1, 2010CharlestonMusic Farm
February 2, 2010JacksonvilleFreebird Live
February 3, 2010St. PetersburgState Theatre
February 4, 2010Fort LauderdaleCulture Room
February 5, 2010OrlandoHouse of Blues
February 6, 2010AthensThe Melting Point
February 8, 2010BirminghamWorkPlay Theatre
February 9, 2010Baton RougeVarsity Theatre
February 10, 2010Little RockThe Revolution
February 11, 2010ValparaisoValparaiso University
February 12, 2010IndianaIndiana University of Pennsylvania
February 13, 2010GranthamMessiah University
February 14, 2010BaltimoreUniversity of Maryland
Europe[3][7]
February 17, 2010BrightonUnited KingdomKomedia
February 18, 2010LondonElectric Ballroom
February 19, 2010OxfordO2 Academy
February 20, 2010Newcastle upon TyneO2 Academy
February 21, 2010BirminghamO2 Academy
February 22, 2010ManchesterManchester Academy
February 24, 2010AmsterdamNetherlandsMelkweg
February 25, 2010BrusselsBelgiumLe Botanique
February 26, 2010ParisFranceLe Nouveau Casino
February 27, 2010CologneGermanyGloria Theater
February 28, 2010Munich59:1
March 1, 2010BerlinMagnet Club
March 2, 2010CopenhagenDenmarkAmager Bio
North America[5][7]
March 30, 2010BoiseUnited StatesKnitting Factory
March 31, 2010Spokane
April 1, 2010SeattleParamount Theater
April 2, 2010VancouverCanadaThe Centre
April 3, 2010PortlandUnited StatesRoseland Theater
April 5, 2010San FranciscoThe Fillmore
April 6, 2010
April 7, 2010PomonaFox Theater
April 8, 2010San DiegoSoma
April 9, 2010Los AngelesClub Nokia
April 10, 2010PhoenixMarquee Theatre
April 12, 2010MagnaThe Great Saltair
April 13, 2010DenverOgden Theatre
April 14, 2010TulsaReynolds Center
April 15, 2010AustinStubb's BBQ
April 16, 2010HoustonVerizon Theatre
April 17, 2010DallasNokia Theatre
April 19, 2010NashvilleWar Memorial
April 20, 2010AtlantaThe Tabernacle
April 22, 2010Washington, D.C.DAR Constitution Hall
April 23, 2010BostonHouse of Blues
April 24, 2010New York CityTerminal 5
April 25, 2010PhiladelphiaElectric Factory
April 27, 2010TorontoCanadaSound Academy
April 28, 2010ClevelandUnited StatesHouse of Blues
April 29, 2010Royal OakRoyal Oak Music Theatre
April 30, 2010ChicagoAragon Ballroom
May 1, 2010MinneapolisState Theatre
May 2, 2010MilwaukeeEagles Ballroom
May 4, 2010Des MoinesVal Air Ballroom
May 5, 2010St. LouisThe Pageant
Europe[6][7]
May 8, 2010GlasgowUnited KingdomBarrowlands
May 9, 2010LondonO2 Shepherd's Bush Empire
May 11, 2010ParisFranceÉlysée Montmartre
May 12, 2010CologneGermanyE-Werk
Asia[7]
November 4, 2010OsakaJapanBig Cat
November 5, 2010NagoyaClub Quattro
November 6, 2010TokyoShibuya AX
Oceania[9]
November 9, 2010SydneyAustraliaEnmore
November 10, 2010MelbournePalais Theatre
November 11, 2010BrisbaneThe Tivoli
November 13, 2010AucklandNew ZealandThe Powerstation

References

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  1. 1 2 Doug Van Pelt (October 12, 2009). "Owl City Announce Early 2010 Tour". HM. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 Timothy Finn (January 22, 2010). "Owl City Launch Tour in Kansas City". Spin. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  3. 1 2 "Tours: Lights with Owl City". PunksNews.org. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Cobra Starship sell out Australian tour". Kill Your Stereo. March 9, 2010. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  5. 1 2 "Owl City Announces Spring 2010 US Headlining Tour; Winter 2010 US Headlining Tour Sold Out". Jesus Freak Hideout. December 18, 2009. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  6. 1 2 Jon Stickler (February 17, 2010). "Owl City Announces Two UK Tour Dates For May". Stereoboard. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Owl City - Events". owlcitymusic.com. Archived from the original on July 7, 2012. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  8. ↑ Lipshutz, Jason (July 2, 2010). "Owl City's Adam Young Releases A New Old Project". Billboard. Retrieved June 22, 2025.
  9. 1 2 John Ritchie (June 15, 2010). "Owl City Announces Australian Tour Dates". Music Feeds. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 Scott Fryberger (January 21, 2010). "Owl City 1/20/10, at McCain Auditorium, Manhattan, KS". Jesus Freak Hideout. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  11. ↑ Elke Mermis (January 22, 2010). "Concert Review: Owl City". The Pitch. Archived from the original on August 21, 2011. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  12. ↑ Mikael Wood (April 11, 2010). "Live review: Owl City at Club Nokia". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 13, 2010. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  13. ↑ Teresa Jue (April 11, 2010). "Concert Review: Owl City". Daily Bruin. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  14. 1 2 Jesse Hughey (April 19, 2010). "Over The Weekend: Owl City, Paper Route and Hot Chelle Rae at The Venue Formerly Known As Nokia Theatre". The Dallas Observer. Retrieved June 22, 2025.
  15. 1 2 Jon Bream (May 2, 2010). "Owl City: His homecoming hootenanny at the State Theatre". The Star Tribune. Archived from the original on February 8, 2019. Retrieved June 20, 2025.
  16. ↑ "Live review: Owl City @ the Ogden Theatre". The Denver Post. April 15, 2010. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  17. 1 2 Caroline Sullivan (May 10, 2010). "Review: Owl City Shepherd's Bush Empire, London". The Guardian. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  18. ↑ Matt Weitz (April 19, 2010). "Concert review: Owl City gives synth-pop a human vibe in Nokia Live performance". Dallas News. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  19. ↑ George Lang (January 22, 2010). "Owl City a 21st century phenomenon". The Oklahoman. Retrieved June 22, 2025.
  20. ↑ Althea Legaspi (May 2, 2010). "Review: Owl City lives out its wide-eyed romanticism in front of screaming fans". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
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