OK Go is back with their third studio album, and it has been created with the purpose of sounding nothing like their two previous albums! Of The Blue Colour of the Sky features a completely new direction in sound that really does test your ears at the worst of times.
The first thing I should talk about is the introduction of the new sound on this album. It is completely different to OK Go’s sound on their previous efforts Oh No and OK Go. The sound was purposely meant to be loud; distorted and meant to give the impression that is has been compressed and butchered by computers. The record was not engineered by its producers which many fans seem to think, and that claim has been made by the band themselves (which features on the snippet “The Sound of the New Record” on the deluxe version of this LP).
If I was to describe the sound I would say it is like the hazy, hippy love world of MGMT mixed with the distortion, feedback drenched love of Dinosaur Jr.
What I like about the new sound is that it still keeps the happy, danceable vibe that OK Go used to its fullest in their previous albums, which help create such hits like Here It Goes Again and Get Over It. The drums keep their funky patterns continuously, while the sketchy, clangy guitar really emphasises it. The songs that retain these somewhat nostalgic sounds are Skyscrapers and WTF? With the single White Knuckle sounding like a metallic, more modern version of Here It Goes Again.
The standout moment for me was listening to the song Last Leaf. It was such a pleasure to hear such a raw acoustic track hidden amongst the aggressive noisier numbers. The break from that ear-drum battering sound is given such a warm welcome and allows you to focus solely on the acoustic guitar and the vocals because a rare event of silence from the background is present.
Apart from Last Leaf, there are many layers and much variety used to keep each song sounding fresh and different. The instruments used are varied, enabling one instrument to make up the majority of the rhythm, for example the electronic keyboard on All Is Not Lost is given the biggest presence. While the deep, fuzzy distortion penetrates through on Needing/Getting. However, the vocals are very rarely structured differently which takes away all of the effort made by the instruments and style of the songs.
Also, some songs do tend to welcome their stay a little too much. One song in particular is Needing/Getting, it’s calmer, slower paced outro+ drags on a little longer than it should.
Overall
I think that OK Go’s new direction of sound is the best decision they have made. I say this because if they kept using their old sound, all songs would certainly be compared to Here It Goes Again and they would most likely be forever trapped within the “Can’t Beat Their Best Song” barrier and their downfall would soon begin. The new sound is great, it’s so raw, broken and has an adrenaline-fuelled purpose to it, I cannot wait to hear how they explore it in their next record. I will give OK Go – Of The Blue Colour of the Sky a 9/10
