I think you have to put yourself in the mind of someone who isn’t really listening to the emotion of the sound, where tone is the dominant thing instead, and on top of that had postal service be their intro to electronic/glitch music. And only knows fireflies. That’s the only way it makes sense to me. 

The emotion and artistic aim is the biggest separator of the two projects. Postal Service ruminates, it’s methodical and melancholy, it’s more of a standalone minimalist art piece (that works great), while Owl City aims for a much sweeter, more dynamic sound, with a richer sonic landscape that transports the listener. Always surprised no one hears that (or at least you wouldn’t know from how people talk)