OneRepublic: Dreaming Out Loud
OneRepublic - what else have they got to be sorry for?
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In a nutshell...
Middle of the road American pop/rock
What's it all about?
Dreaming Out Loud is the debut album from American pop/rock band OneRepublic, who shot to fame last year after hip-hop producer Timbaland featured a remix of their track Apologize on his 2007 album Shock Value. The huge success of this song and their follow up Stop and Stare means the release of Dreaming Out Loud has been eagerly anticipated.
However, don't expect the album to follow where Apologize left off. This is not one for the R 'n' B kids. Instead Stop and Stare gives more of an indication of what Dreaming Out Loud is all about, although even this doesn't quite sum it up. OneRepublic are touted as a rock band but this label is somewhat ill-fitting. In fact it's frustratingly difficult to put them in one well-defined box and keep them there.
It's obvious they have been influenced by many of the British indie crooners storming the charts today, offering up a dash of Keane and a dollop of Coldplay. However at times their sound is more mature boy band pop of the same ilk as the older and mellower Take That, and there are of course the slightly predictable hints of fellow American bands the Fray and Matchbox 20 creeping in for good measure.
Who's it by?
OneRepublic were formed by lead singer and songwriter Ryan Tedder and his school pal guitarist Zach Filkins. They signed a record deal in the summer of 2005 and in 2006 started making noise with their MySpace page.
That summer they were consistently ranked as one of the top musical acts on the social networking site and seemed to be set for some success. But it was the band's relationship with Timbaland that really helped to turn things around.
It seems that everything Timbaland touches turns to gold, and Apologize was no exception, helping OneRepublic to achieve the international success they craved.
Out of the band lead vocalist Tedder has already made his name as a successful songwriter, penning tracks for the likes of Paul Oakenfold, Jennifer Lopez and Natasha Beddingfield. Leona Lewis' Bleeding Love, which became the UK's bestselling single in 2007, is one of his most notable creations.
As an example...
"I'm on the road to who knows where/Look ahead, not behind, I keep sayin'/There's no place to go where you're not there/On your rope, I hold tight, but it's frayin'/ And I take everything from you/But you'll take anything, won't you?" - Prodigal
"I walked a minute in your shoes, they never would have fit/I figured there's nothing to lose, I need to get/Some perspective on these words, before I write them down/You're an island and my ship has run aground." - All We Are
Likelihood of a trip to the Grammy's
Tedder is already a Grammy nominated songwriter, but whether he can win any awards with his own band remains to be seen. OneRepublic may be able to ride the crest of the Apologize wave for a while longer but without Timbaland's Midas touch it's unclear whether they will be able achieve the success necessary to catapult them to award-winning proportions.
What the others say
"Songs like Apologize, Mercy or All We Are are built to raise lighters the world over. But delve a little deeper and the lyrics deliver hardly any grist for the mental mill. It's too cliche-ridden by far." - BBC
"OneRepublic sound so much like Keane, you'll be shaking your MP3 player, expecting Tom Chaplin and co to fall out any second." - RealMusic Blog
So is it any good?
Dreaming Out Loud is a patchwork of influences that leaves you wondering who the real OneRepublic are. Their obvious influences are Keane, Snow Patrol and Coldplay and this can be felt throughout the album. However the slight pop quality that runs straight through the middle makes it sound more boy band than rock band. In places Tedder's keening vocals even sound decidedly Shayne Ward-esque.
Aside from Apologize and Stop and Stare, which have already proved their worth, there are a few potential hits on this album. All We Are sounds like it could be a winning single and the Thom Yorke-inspired Prodigal, which although not quite as radio-friendly as some of the other tracks, is surprisingly good and definitely one of the best on the album.
But despite the wide range of influences and the fact that it's difficult to pin down exactly what OneRepublic is about from one song to the next, the album as a whole does seem to plod along at times and songs such as Something's Not Right and the title track Dreaming Out Loud have you reaching for the skip button.
With the exception of one or two tracks Dreaming Out Loud is low on surprises. It will probably appeal to fans of The OC, Dawson's Creek and other such US teen dramas where angst-ridden pop/rock soundtracks are the order of the day, but it is unlikely to raise the heart rate of those looking for something fresh and exciting.
While it's likely to enjoy some success on the back of the last two singles there's every chance that this album will simply fade into the background in a few weeks time.
5/10
Gemma Roskell
"Terrible review!! I don't understand why critics are so hell bent against this band- the album is full of one great song after another- incredible writing, incredible singing. It's so unfortunate that anything commercially viable gets ripped to shreds by critics. This album sounds like it was created for people who actually enjoy music, not those who enjoy ripping it apart like elitists- I'd bet any amount of money that this album will have legs FAR beyond the first two singles- there's more singles on here than i've heard on any album in ages. I can't wait for the lads in OneRepublic to prove all the critcs wrong, and maybe even shut them up for once. The fans dictate who is good and who is rubbish." - Jonathan Menders