As well as providing social commentary , Odyssey Number Five also discussed love , a recurring motif in Fanning 's songwriting . Fanning noted that one of the causes of this was his passion for soul and gospel music , stating that he " listen [ s ] to a lot of soul music that 's unashamedly about love and how good it make you feel " . Lead guitarist Ian Haug agreed , and also noted that the band as a whole was fully committed to Fanning 's lyrics , stating " It 's really important for us to agree with what Bernard is singing . "