It had already begun.
Maroon 5’s first radio hit “Maps” was blaring from every teenage girl’s Volkswagen Beetle and every mom’s minivan. Anticipation for “V,” the band’s upcoming album, was on the rise – and so were fervent prayers for a shirtless Adam Levine album cover.
Just days before the album release, “Maps” reached the top six on American Top 40 with Ryan Seacrest, stirring high hopes for a fading band.
But the album proved only a disappointment. The “old” Maroon 5, loved by many for so long, is dead and gone.
In “V,” high-pitched, electronic sounds replace the instruments. It is as though Adam Levine’s new “iconic pop image” overtook the band completely, demanding music that better conforms to what pop music “should” sound like.
“V” also includes a special guest appearance from Gwen Stefani, a trait that should redeem any album. Despite the influence of this pop/rock goddess, the songs still run together. Don’t even bother with reaching for the skip button – chances are you will still think you’re listening to “Maps” fifteen minutes into the album.
Perhaps the most disappointing part of the new release is the botched cover of “Sex and Candy,” made famous by Marcy Playground. Maroon 5 took one of the catchiest “songs that you think you don’t know but you actually know every word to” and turned it into a sad, almost bluesy ballad. The cover was only a dried up, forgotten shadow of the band’s former sound. To save other great songs from future Maroon 5 covers, the track should probably be shoved into the back of a desk drawer.
To be fair, Maroon 5 had a good run. Their debut album, “Songs About Jane,” set hearts on fire with sultry pop/rock tunes. Even in subsequent albums, this unique sound drove fans crazy. It’s sad to admit that, today, they are just another band doomed to churn out overplayed American Top 40 hits.
Obviously, the men of Maroon 5 forgot their identity as a band. Hopefully, in the future, they will remember it again. Or maybe they’ll just retire and let Adam Levine keep pretending to be a good mentor on “The Voice” although his own band missed its chance for a comeback.
Save some money and treat “V” like one of those albums on iTunes where you can buy only a couple of songs for $4, rather than the whole record. The rest of the album will sound exactly like those two songs you liked anyway.
