AJR - OK ORCHESTRA // ALBUM REACTION + REVIEW 

I’m so blown away by the response to this video. Thank you all so much. Looking forward to all of the conversations below ❤️🙏🏾

I just wanna say I appreciate that you still say things like “If you like it then that’s all that matters.” Most people who don’t like AJR say things like “what kind of people can bear to here this trash?” Thank you for not being one of those people!

This is the only guy who critique ajr that made me smile and not uncomfortable

I am a huge AJR fan and I can say you are the most fair and genuine critic I have ever watched

So, now we have the official list of all the songs he likes from AJR: 1. The Click - * Turning Out 2. Neotheater - * The Entertainment’s Here * Karma * Finale 3. OK ORCHESTRA- * 3 O’Clock Things * My Play * BANG! * Ordinaryish People * Way Less Sad I hope I’m not missing anything, but I’m pretty sure that’s all!

I love AJR, my absolute faves. Thank you for being respectful, critical but not insulting of our music taste :)

Most AJR critics: Why do you like this trash?! If you like this than you probably dumb. You’re terrible. I would rather be scorched by 1,000 suns than listen to this music. You: Yeah, this isn’t really my style. I don’t really like how busy it was here. I mean, you like your music, but it's not for me. Oh this part is nice!

Joe is about someone that Ryan (The songwriter) that he admired back in school, who was the cool kid, always made the class laugh, but it sounds like a bully. But from what they've said it doesn't seem like they were a bully. And also, they said that Ryan wanted to call Joe to just say hi to someone he knew back in school he hasn't talked to in a while.

I've finally figured out why AJR fans like AJR so much... We thrive on chaos

While I understand not liking Christmas in June due to the Christmas theme, I think it is one of their strongest songs from an all-around perspective, and I think it is both a sign and acknowledgement of their maturation as a band. I say this because this song tackles the same subject as Come Hang Out from The Click (My favorite song off that album), in that they both tackle the idea of missing out on something. For Come Hang Out, that was the fear of missing out on a music career if they didn't work on it constantly (An idealized, what some may call a "child-like" dream). For Christmas in June, it's the fear of missing out on relationships and a family because they are too busy with their music career (A more mature, considered idea). The two songs even reference the same event in two drastically different lights, that being AJR skipping out on prom to appear on the Elvis Duran radio show, which just kind of speaks to how the two are linked. This, to me, shows AJR's maturation as artists, and why I feel that both Christmas in June, as well as OK Orchestra is most definitely a positive sign for the future of their music. Regardless, I love your reactions/reviews, and am so happy to see you uploading again!

You’re literally one of the only true reviewers still out there. You’re reviewing to review, not just to bash on a creator. You make me want to watch more of you videos. I’m definitely subscribing!

Joe is the cool kid that Ryan looked up to him. But Joe didn't actually care about him. And Ryan still looks up to him.

I find that AJR tends to structure their songs artistically first, which means that they sometimes use sounds that some don't vibe with. Trick is a good example. The song is about how kids make up stories and tell lies for attention and to seem cool amongst their peers and how that behavior can bleed into adulthood when you're trying to impress someone you're attracted to. The vocal is more distorted when he's lying, only returning to normal during the chorus because he's being more honest now. I really like the artistic choices once I understood that, but I too was initially put off by the distorted voice. There's a reason you never hear songs like The Trick on the radio haha

At least you don't literally bash at them like other reactions. You gave honest and understandable thoughts even though I disagree with some more than others.

man, i love watching your reactions so much because, even though you don’t like it, you don’t shit on others for enjoying it

The high pitched voice in The Trick is supposed to be a child lying to his friends about his life to make himself seem more exiting. Just some context lul

I'm appreciate you took the time to actually listen to the song rather than complain every five seconds of it. I know that AJR is not for everyone but I do appreciate when people swallow their pride and give credit where credit is due. Edit: Finished watching the video, and I'm so glad you enjoyed Way Less Sad, it became my anthem for this year, and sorry if my comment feels passive aggressive, it was based on a critic who basically complained about everything on the album.

I love how unbiased this is and how you dont judge people for listening to this. You've earned my sub

I've noticed the pattern in that the songs he likes from AJR have been alot more straightforward with the beats and lyrics wich I guess makes sense and I have no problem with that at all

I have to say, I'm really excited to see both a positive AND negative review. I'm glad that you were honest while also not attacking the people who do enjoy songs that you might not have. On first passing, I had a very similar reaction, but the more I listened to the ones I didn't like the first time, and the more I researched the context of some of the lyrics, the more I liked them. I think Neotheater had a much more fluent feeling, but they're definitely experimenting with more here. I'm guessing by the next one (in a few years) we'll have something a bit more polished. Thank you for the review!

Just wanted to come say that I appreciate your honest feedback and not just immediately bashing the project. I've listened to the album north of 30 times now and it's been interesting to see how my own feelings about songs have flipped. A lot of the songs I initially wasn't in love with have grown on me A LOT. I've also found that understanding their take on the songs helps shine light on why things are written or produced the way they are. The Zach Sang Interview was really good for this. This is the first video I've seen of yours and I really enjoyed it, your take on stuff, and also your genuine reactions. Had me laughing haha! Edit: Forgot to mention, you liked Way Less Sad so much... You should look of the history of how it was made, 9 years in the making and portions of it were turned down by both Kygo and Cardi B

I personally really like everything they do with their songs but I’m really glad you don’t bash others for liking it unlike so many people who don’t like AJR, thank you for not being rude about it

I’m glad you enjoyed some of the songs on here! I reckon their next project is going to be them mastering their sound based on what we got in this album

One of the best reviews out there. I usually just see people say ajr is bad and starts bashing the album which i dont exactly hate them for I just think they just jump into conclusion and flame the songs like crazy

I'm so glad you liked ordinaryish people! It's my fave from the album but hasn't had the best reception compared to some of the other songs

It’s a year since you posted this so chances of seeing it are pretty low, BUT: I watched your Neotheater review a long time ago and loved how genuine and fair you were. I’ve tried finding this channel since and only today found it. I’m so happy I did because you’re the only AJR critic i’ve seen who’s been fair and valid in their judgements whilst also not ridiculing the people who enjoy their music. I’m a big fan of theirs and granted it’s a unique taste, but seeing such fair criticism is so refreshing.

I think that even if you critic, the most important thing is that you’re honest and respectful, great work man!

10:09 OH GOD IM DYING OF LAUGHTER THE FACE SHIFT HHAHA

Why is it that I had a predictions list of all the songs you’d probably like of this record? And why were all of them right? 😂

Huge AJR fan here, and I found you through this review, definitely going to watch more of your videos! I appreciate your review quality and honesty a lot, and even if many of the songs you disliked were my favorites, it's very interesting to hear some insight on them and think a bit more critically! Especially as someone with zero musical theory knowledge myself. One thing you said at the end is exactly how I feel about AJR and why I love them so much; I do fully agree they sound like they make music for themselves, and as a (drawing) artist myself, I think that genuine feel is what makes me huge fan of even their songs where the lyrics are messy and don't make sense. I've been in those states where you just gotta write or draw whatever comes out stream of consciousness style, and I personally have yet to find more bands that do things like that, because they do really get reactions like yours en masse. Just the kind of '??? what??? this is not it' vibe. And even I had a few moments of that myself, but further listens have me going like 'okay yeah this is actually pretty good, didn't get it at first, but the vibes are definitely here.' I feel like a lot of songs on this album are ones that you gotta listen to a few times, at least for me, and then they start to grow on you. Also playing them as more background to other activities is how I really love AJR songs; Bummerland is one of my favorites mainly because of the energy in it, and I'll listen to it to wake up or when I go out kayaking. The busyness is a bit much to just sit there and listen to, but when working out or creating or doing any sort of activity, it's a blast. Also fully agree on you with the Christmas feel LOL man I H A T E Christmas music. AJR please it is MARCH! Let us escape the commercialized hell for just a couple months!!!

Joe is less of a bully and more just somebody they looked up to who didn't really give them the time of day, and for some reason they still want his approval even though they know thats dumb

The way you said neon-theater made me upset 😂 but I’m very much enjoying your commentary!

Hey, thanks for giving it a chance! I appreciated hearing both your positive and negative commentary!

I really like how honest and objective you were with your reaction!

Im glad you like 3'Oclock Things, Ordinaryish people, Way Less Sad! I really like those too!

Humpty Dumpty wasn't my favorite, but for some reason I catch myself whistling it ALL THE TIME

I just started watching your old Panic, Paramore, and FOB reactions from years ago. Im really happy you're back! Keep it up : )

I watched every AJR review from you because they rest of them don’t give a chance with them and go into the album ready to hate because it’s so called a “AJR” record and that why I like you as a critic and review because you go in opened minded and give it s chance I respect the review of this album.

you make me feel like it doesn't matter who i like, as long as i like them, no one else has done that, thanks man:)

Man is back!!

Been checking your channel daily for this to come out. Great review as always. Glad to see you back.

So I absolutely love AJR and this album but I also really like this reaction and I completely understand your criticisms and although I personally really like a lot of the stuff that your criticized and disliked, I also think your criticism is valid and I love hearing and understanding different opinions from mine. (Specifically I love the chaos stuff that you dislike, but I also love a lot of the chiller more orchestral stuff that you liked too)

For someone who loves their overtures, i completely understand why people dont bhahah. I personally love how busy they are. btw just going through a "the tune up" marathon cuz i forgot how good ur reactions are. i watched ur neotheatre review years ago and im so happy ive found ur channel again. Ur one of the VERY few reviewers who are fair to AJR and its nice to see someone not spread hate on a band i love 😭 So glad u like ordynarish people and way less sad as well hahaha Excited to see ur reaction to TMM

I love how every review you watch you can pretty much tell what kind of music someone listens to

I respect you a lot. You don't bash at them and the fact that you talk about their improvement (which I as a fan felt too). This is probably their best written project. And I like it a lot. Lets wait and see if you like their next album XD. Also I agree with you that Christmas in June is the worst closure. It's not a bad song by any means. But it's not a good closure.

thank you for respecting the fans’ opinions! a bunch of people just hate on it and the fans.

this review is really good! you gave valid points and gave some good criticism. I also really like the vibe that you give off.

Im late to this but I really liked your review on this, I like how you go in with a fair mindset on each song. I didn't expect you to like EVERY song of course, but i'm glad you did like some of them! Seems like most of the songs are either hit or miss for most people. I'm glad you enjoyed some of it! This is one of my favorite albums so it's nice to see someone not go in with a bad mentality on every song

Glad to have you back 🙏🙏

Probably most unbiased review I've seen, you earned yourself a sub.

When I saw you posted another video I had just gotten out of the shower and I rushed to watch it so fast I put my shorts on backwards

This video made me smile and laugh! I love every song on this album but your critiquing was fun to watch and it was interesting to see your perspective. Your critiquing seemed pretty unbiased and I liked that. Definitely gonna subscribe😊😊😊

I definitely feel like OK Overture wouldn’t have felt like “too much” as much as it did if it was presented at the ending of the album, but obviously it wouldn’t make sense since it’s called an overture

My favorite song by AJR ever is Adventure is Out There. It’s not my favorite because it’s the best written, it sounds the best, etc. it’s my favorite because it’s the first song i heard by them and it got me hooked. Oh, and by the way, Ryan (the song writer) explained the running gag of the song was the socks were more adventurous and courageous than he was. He then went on to say the chorus , “Holy moly it’s a real do nothing day I could change address and try another state I could change my name, It won’t do anything.” Was him just throwing out things he thought would help when in reality the problem wasn’t what he could do, but who he was and if he’d ever actually do it.

High Key was waiting for this specific one lmao

I really enjoyed this video and your honesty You are very fair and don't shit on our boys Like someone already said, you are the only AJR critique who can make AJRmy smile and not feel bad

Ayyo, its my birthday and this video just finished my night, thanks mate!

Oh god I'm so nervous. I really respect you as a critic but I also love ajr so I really hope you like it! Edit: Ok so glad that you loved 3 of there songs, and think they're sound is improving! (Although I was very disappointed at your opinion on Christmas in June since that was my favourite ajr song, but whatever, music is suggestive.)

Honestly I love you... the fact you don't just hate you actually give them a chance and don't pass judgement on others for their opinion

Glad ur back

Ayyyy hes back! Hope your doing well man! I personally really enjoyed this album haha, but yes thx for reacting to it, stay blessed 🤙

I may be the only non-AJR fan in this comments section, I personally dislike them quite a bit, but I always appreciate how you really put a lot of thought into this. Even hearing your negative comments made me appreciate the desired effects of these songs. Still cannot stand this band though.

Respect to you for being honest and respecting the tastes of others 👍

Fair review! 3'Oclock, my play, bang, ordinaryish people, way less sad are 🔥🔥🔥 to me. I love the production and creativity AJR puts in their music. Then they do too much or try to hard sometimes. I love a lot of AJR songs though

This review is the most honest review that has truly made me laugh

Ryan, the lead producer and piano player for the band said that the album would have some hyper pop elements to it, kinda hints why joe had all that crazy 808s and Vocals

Believe me when I say I was checking your channel on the daily for this - a reaction from the most fair reviewer on the platform! Went from 1 good song on the click, to 3 on neotheater, and now 4 here...maybe in another ~10 albums we'll get a fully positive reaction 😆 Either way, it's a nice change from "omg wtf is this trash, anyone who enjoys this is braindead"

So happy he was bumpin' to Way Less Sad... that is all

I love your videos man!!!!! You are awesome!!! Adventure is out there for me is about his socks doing more then him.

Don’t normally comment on stuff on RU-vid but I thoroughly enjoyed this!! Commenting to help out the algorithm😂🙌🏻

Yeah your way more fair to most. I'm not even a hew ajr fan and I think most critics and review/ reaction channels do the same thing to ajr as they did to mania. The beats are so wild with so much to them and going on it takes 3 or 4 listens to fully grasp what your listening to and most people are either swayed by what other people are saying or have said, or they don't give it more than one chance to try to understand why people like it

Even as a die hard fan of AJR I had small issues while listening. I still liked all the songs, but I totally understand exactly where most people have problems! Thanks for being respectful and acknowledging parts of the songs that you did like. Most people just bash them and their fans, but I was smiling listening to your review even when I didn't agree with you! Everyone has different tastes :D

AJR definitely is a more lyric focused band, however they do have some songs that are a bit to complex for other people to understand. An example of that would be “The Trick” and that weird high pitched voice. They said in an interview that the reason they used that high pitched voice was because the song’s main message was about a person lying to make them seem more interesting but then it becomes a problem when you meet a person you want to be with and you want to be honest with. The high pitched voice is supposed to be “the lier” and then his normal voice, or “the truthteller” comes in when he’s talking about him wanting to break that habit. Like I said some of their lyrics or things they do in their songs may not make sense until you look into it a bit more. If you want to understand what the songs mean a bit better, feel free to ask me or check out some of their interviews or live streams on the new album Edit: My twitter is @NateLocker if you want to reach out

Loved the reaction ! you are so genuine and i love that, btw i’m pretty sure you won’t like living room but i still want you to react to it for the content LMAO

Don’t listen to Living Room lol

I love this guy's reactions to their songs that he likes

Glad you could enjoy at least a few of the songs on the album!

I'm a few months late but here are my thoughts: for some background I'm not diehard but I am a big fan of ajr and I do like a lot of their songs. That's not to say that I love everything they put out - I personally hated "the trick"( I think that's what the song's called). Anyways, I was looking for a reaction to some of their stuff that was really honest and had both negative and positive opinion on it and I watched yours(first time viewing something on your channel). I gotta say I do really appreciate your ability to evaluate their stuff, distinguish what you do and don't like, but also remind viewers that it is subjective and it's just your opinion(not to diminish what you have to say). I do think that the conflict for you at least is that mention of how "busy" their songs are. That's just AJRs style to be honest. You obviously already realize this but they love working with synths, all kinds of instruments, etc., to get the feel and the sound they want. Especially with the overture, or lots of overtures in general, it's literally a combination of the songs so if you don't like the busy feel, overtures just aren't going to be enjoyable for you. And you mentioned you had a liking to a country feel in some parts of their songs, but again, in general they're a unique, definitely pop based group so again that is a bit of a conflict with what you enjoy. Overall though I appreciate your opinion and I thought you did a good job on the video. One suggestion, if you haven't seen it yet, and since you liked this song, is their video of how they made Bang! It's only 9 minutes long and dives into their thinking process, instruments they used, creative ways to get a certain sound, etc., so you might enjoy that since you liked the song. Anyways, keep it up and thanks for the honest reaction!

I'm argentinian, so my english is not very good. But still, i just wanna tell you that i really like your reactions and i think that you are a very good critic (I only see the reactions of the ajr's and twenty one pilots's albums, but i will see more of your videos). I really aprecciate that you only focus on your opinion and not in critic what the other people thinking 👏👏👏

Ordinaryish People’s really got all the juice I won’t lie

Great Review!

From what I've seen from overtures, and I've seen a lot haha, they are confusing and a little jumbled most of the time. They're a bunch of songs you haven't heard rolled into one. Kinda always full of chaos haha. That's why AJR recommends listening to it at the end as well. So you can understand where all the parts come from. But if you just don't like that kind of thing, you do you! I'm just glad you don't hate on the without giving fair criticisms as most do. Thank you for this review!

hey man, i love AJR and i was expecting you to trash on them hardcore but i have mad respect for you now

everyone here in the comments have already told you but you’re literally amazing and every time someone bashes me for liking AJR i’ll tell them what you told us.

Speaking of mumford and sons have you heard the song Broken Crown?

Joe was who Ryan aka AJ”R” always wanted to be like but joe didn’t want anything to do with Ryan.

someone who doesn't like every AJR song but respects the opinion of other AJR fans? you have my support

Another massive AJR guy here, yeah Humpty Dumpty is not it, I jam to about everything on this album, man, everything but Humpty Dumpty, but then again, that could be because that’s the song on the album I’ve heard the least XD Glad you (loosely, for a lack of better phrasing) enjoyed yourself listening to Ok Orchestra!❤️ Sidenote: this is how I look at people that do nothing but bash AJR every time they’ve released a new album every 2 years: What I’ve observed is that nearly every single reason that critics give for hating certain songs, is every reason why fans such as myself and a lot of the people in this comment section tune in every time. AJR is made for certain ears only, and if God did not bless you with the ears to enjoy it, you’re not gonna enjoy it, plain and simple. Their whole deal is that they try things no one else will, that is their sound. Us and AJRs haters are at an impasse because of the nature of it all. Just about everything they hate them for is why we love them. That’s how I see it. P.S World’s Smallest Violin is the best track on the album for me, no question XD Take care😊

Have you listened to the album Mr by Leslie Odom Jr? Its one of my faves so I’d love to know your thoughts!

Nah man that busy section was really pretty sounding in ok overture

Fun Fact: Bang was planned to be for Neotheater Deluxe but they felt like it was so different than Neotheater so they went ahead to OK Orchestra. Edit: My favorite songs are Break My Face and Way Less Sad

very fair critic. I'm just sad you couldn't enjoy humpty dumpty as much as me. that song about blew me away. very fair though

Havent watched it yet but Im assuming you won't particularly enjoy it. I know I didn't enjoy quite a lot of songs on here. The best songs were some of the singles + 3 O'Clock Things, Humpty Dumpty, World's Smallest Violin, Ordinaryish People and Christmas In June. The Trick has so much potential as a song because of the chord progression and melody, but I really just can't get past the vocal effect on it so Im praying for an acoustic or a version without the vocal effect. The album cover is absolutely fucking dope tho. It's like a 6/10 for me, some low lows and some high highs but also just a fuck ton of 'meh'. Usually i see tons of criticism on AJR albums and songs for confusing instrumentals and just the instruments not fitting together into a coherent sound/vision. On this album I think almost all of it fit, I'm just not sure I particularly enjoyed a lot of it enough to return to it in the future. Christmas in June really hits hard for me though.

I'll say this: even tho I don't like this album I do think it's best project so far. Maybe they'll makes an album that'll blow my mind in the future. Christmas in June is my personal favorite that one is probably their best song in my opinion. Pretty surprised about how many songs you liked on this album lol.

Damn bro really said he hated Christmas in June 😔 but I'm glad you still enjoying them.

Ok I understand your point of view, but an overture is supposed to be almost chaotic. It's literally every song on the album slapped together. I get that it can be too much tho lol.

christmas in june is my favorite, everyone seems to hate it and for me its my fav

The song Humpty Dumpty is about depression. It’s about how even when ur depressed you can’t just take a pause on life, but when ur alone then it’s ok to cry a bit and be sad but like can’t just stop for everything

LET'S GOOOO 😂😂😂

At 34:49 when he said “I’m not happy” I was half expecting a “but I’m way less sad”