When OK Go released their last album, Hungry Ghosts, David Cameron was UK Prime Minister, Conchita Wurst won the Eurovision Song Contest for Austria with ‘Rise Like a Phoenix’, and Chris Martin and Gwyneth Paltrow “consciously uncoupled”, whatever the hell that meant. The point is, it was all a long time ago, in a galaxy not very far away.
OK Go has always been something more than just a band. While they bend in the art direction, they are not an art project. They have won numerous awards for their constantly creative videos (more on this later). For many, the video for ‘Here It Goes Again’, where they choreographed a dance routine on treadmills, may have been the first introduction to the band after the video went viral. They’ve even had their music encoded on actual strands of DNA. Not even Taylor Swift can boast that accolade!
Whilst they have certainly not remained dormant since their last album, it always adds an extra level of jeopardy when there has been such a long gap between releases. They have continued to tour, released numerous singles and kept themselves in the public’s consciousness. How does OK Go fit into the world in 2025? Is And the Adjacent Possible a triumphant return?
There’s certainly a lot to like here. Amongst the twelve tracks, there are certainly some crackers. Take the album’s first track, ‘Impulse Purchase’. The first few notes of the album are big, fat, squelchy, squishy beats. They smack you in the chops like someone launching at you with a massive halibut. It is a big, bold opening statement. It is captivating and has a gentle aroma of They Might Be Giants.
If that wasn’t enough, ‘A Stone Only Rolls Downhill’ continues the quality with a slither of chilled funk. “And I wish I could say it would be alright”, decrees lead vocalist Damian Kulash with an extract of despair dripping from his words. Released as the lead single for the album, the video created by the band once again pushes boundaries and harnesses the power of experimentation. It features sixty-four videos on sixty-four phones laid out as a moving mosaic and is a genuine work of art. The band did more than a thousand takes over eight days, and the final video crams over two hours and twenty minutes of single-take clips into one frame—a suitably amazing video to compliment an excellent song.
‘Love’ kicked in, and I was transported back to 1979 as the opening bars took me directly to ‘Making Plans for Nigel’ by XTC. It is a great thumping rock song with a 70s vibe. The beautifully urgent drums provided by Dan Konopka push the song along like a steam train. There’s a little play with the production midway through the track as the drums are pushed to the far left of the soundscape and vocals out to the edges of the right-hand side. It throws you a little but in a pleasant way.
It’s funny how songs make you think. No sooner had I got into ‘A Good, Good Day at Last’ I began to think about how I could see Suzi Quattro performing it on Top of the Pops. The track is a great example of how OK Go layer and construct their sound, creating a sonic avalanche which buries you.
Dusting off the bossa nova setting on their keyboard, we are treated to the 60s rock ‘n’ roll fueled ‘Fantasy vs. Fantasy’. It has echoes of Gene Vincent and could easily have been pulled from The Rocky Horror Picture Show. This track demonstrates how OK Go can easily jump about musical genres.
Staying in ballad country, ‘This Is How It Ends’ is a sparse composition compared to much of the content of this album. With the subtle aroma of ‘Falling’ by Julee Cruise, this track is ripe for selection for the soundtrack of a Netflix drama series. “But I suppose nobody promised it would all mean anything/God, how naïve, believing there’s a point to everything” are lyrics to match today’s mood, bittersweet melancholy tinged with a thread of hope for the future.
As we hit the half-time whistle, the Los Angeles-based quartet had a good first-half performance. They came out on the front foot and played a direct, attack-minded game. They fired strong shots at the eardrums, hitting with regularity and aplomb. How will they approach the second half?
With disco funk front and centre, ‘Take Me with You’ sees OK Go in comfortable territory. With a catchy guitar riff, I am reminded of The Lottery Winners here, blended with some New Order and a fistful of Bowie. With an interesting chord progression and bouncy vibes, this song feels like how you’d expect an OK Go song to sound and feel.
‘Better Than This’ is a punchy little pop song, inoffensive and pleasant on the ears, whilst ‘Golden Devils’ has a lush, sleazy cabaret feel throughout. The radio-friendly ‘Once More with Feeling’ will have your toes tapping and will undoubtedly have its place on your summertime playlist. However, it feels like the band has started to sit back and pick up the points. The attacking flair of the first half has become more about midfield possession – keeping things steady and defending their lead.
“I’m so tired, the empty kind/The kind that you keep even after you sleep a deep and dreamless night/The kind that lives behind your eyes/But it’s all right, it’s all right”, declares Kulash as the words for ‘Going Home’ hit very close to home. A soft ballad with vague similarities to the later work of The Beatles, the sentiment of the song becomes a little lost in a song that never really gets into second gear. It is palatable and gentle but not necessarily inspiring.
The album hits full-time with the closer ‘Don’t Give Up Now’. With a choral, hymn-like quality, I feel it is a weak end to And the Adjacent Possible. The album seems to fizzle out, running down the clock, waiting for the referee to blow the final whistle. Also, the consistent use of vocal effects throughout the album becomes very noticeable in the later tracks and begins to grate on you.
With such a strong showing in the first half of this album, I am a little disappointed with how the second half transpired. Whilst not terrible by any stretch, it simply doesn’t keep up with the promise of the first half. What should have been a rout and a goal fest ended up as a comfortable victory, running the clock down towards the end.
This album will be a hit with the die-hard fans. I am unsure whether their fan base will swell because of And the Adjacent Possible. However, I am sure that tracks like ‘Love’, ‘A Stone Only Rolls Downhill’ and ‘Take Me with You’ will be highly streamed when people are exposed to them. They encapsulate all that is good about OK Go and their approach to music. For me, I think the running order could have been better and would have meant tracks like ‘Going Home’ and ‘Golden Devils’ would have been given more prominence and established a better balance. I’d also argue that ten tracks may have tightened things up further and made for a punchier, exhilarating album.
And the Adjacent Possible really feels like the proverbial game of two halves. I would still suggest you check it out, as I am sure there will be tracks that you will enjoy, maybe even love. There is some high-quality meat on sturdy bones for your delectation here, but I wouldn’t want to strip the carcass for every morsel.
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