OneRepublic Wakes Up

Denver based band OneRepublic is experiencing some major growing pains on their sophomore album, Waking Up – except that the growth doesn’t sound all that painful; instead, it’s a sign of how much they’ve matured (even if it doesn’t work all the time). It flows more like a concept album, at first – the concept being: here’s a bunch of songs about a band who got relatively famous in a short amount of time and here’s what they’ve learned up to this point (far-fetched, I know). On the first song “Made For You,” lead singer Ryan Tedder basks in the glow of newfound attention as he sings, “Everybody wants you to make it – it’s all yours / everybody wants you to take it – it’s all yours.”

Seemingly, OneRepublic had the world at their fingertips after the release of their song “Apologize,” produced by Timbaland (who, maybe not-so-coincidentally, also executively produces this album). But with great fame comes all the perks and pressures of stardom – hence the song, “All The Right Moves,” the second track and current lead single. The song is similar to what made “Apologize” so likeable – a heavy reliance on drumbeats and catchy hooks and a sincere performance.

The band has found a formula for defining their sound and sticks to it pretty consistently – which results in some hits and misses. “Everybody Loves Me” is a playful song backed by guitar and a drum loop. “All This Time” attempts to be a sweet ballad, complete with a string section, but it doesn’t quite succeed. “Fear” sees Tedder back behind the piano, accompanied by strings, but the rhythm seems a bit off. The title track sounds like it could have just as easily been performed by Coldplay, which could be a sign that OneRepublic is on the verge of truly breaking out as musicians and performers.