Rushing from their success with their The Voice hit single "Moves Like Jagger", Maroon 5 released their fourth studio album Overexposed on June 26th. Although the stand alone hit is only featured on the international version of the album as a bonus track, the sound of the other tracks is very pop-friendly with slight reminisces of sound from their early career. Usually when a band gets more fame and success, their sound tends to change to fit mainstream audiences and, unfortunately, Maroon 5 has fallen in to this trap.
Given their new pop-appeal direction the track "One More Night" is a reggae-tinged strong opener with the strongest lyrics about a bad habit that Levine cant seem to let go. The following "Payphone" is the album's lead single and recruits the lyrical skills of Wiz Khalifa to cement massive radio play in its catchy hook and simple but addictive chorus. The mood shifts to more serious tone with the Levine co-produced track "Daylight" that comes across more as a Chris Martin Coldplay homage with the chill, soft rock vibe. Quickly this mood shifts into the guitar heavy, up-beat track "Lucky Strike". The "Man who Never lied" focuses more on Levine's recurring theme of relationship troubles and a memorable chorus. A theme of bad relationships coupled with Levine's heartbreak seem to be the focus on Overexposed with the following Tedder and Zancanella produced "Love Somebody" that singles out Levine's voice as the standout instrument. Switching from Levine's relationship troubles to the falsetto pitched "lady Killer", offers a little more rock influence with a solo guitar rip. The album keeps the same momentum with a slight break into a piano driven ballad on the creatively titled track "Sad" and accoustic guitar close-out "Beautiful Goodbye".
While enlisting some of the top pop-producers in the industry like Max Martin, Benny Banco, and Ryan Tedder, it is clear the band is taking a step into a new, more Levine focused direction for mainstream audiences. Considering that Levine is the stand-alone star of the group, recent reality show superstar, and penned a majority of the songs with the producers, I guess you can make your processed voice the strongest instrument on the album. Whether this is going to be his last full length album with the bandmates before going solo or an attempt to reach the top of the Billboard charts, Overexposed is the band's attempt to reach the top of the pop charts with a thrown together mix of pop, gritty rock, and some techno tracks that come across less organic and more of an effort to outdo disappointing sales of their last album Hands All Over.
Over the years we have seen Brown grow from a 16 year-old MJ inspired Hip-hop act to a mature performer. Although he is no stranger to controversy, he was able to bounce back from a Ike Tunrer career "black-list" to Grammy awards and #1 album. Personal feelings aside, he shows steady growth and evolution in sound with his latest LP Fortune.
Leading with the infectious dance single "Turn Up the music" was a smart choice to start the mood off light and geared towards the club and pop charts. Brown eventually opens up to listeners with brutal honesty rap on "Bassline" by stating "You heard about my image/But I could give a flying motherf--- who's offended" (definitely going to be the next unintentional underground hit). He enlists Wiz and Big Sean for the "Look At Me Now"-esque track "Till I die" and recruits legendary NY emcee Nas for the following TLC "Waterfalls" sampled reggae mixed track "Mirage". He later contradicts himself on the "Don't Judge Me" track. convincing fans that he is not what the media portrays him eventhough most of it is true.
The following tracks take a more R&B tone with a mix of racy lyrics, addictive hooks, and synth heavy beats. "2012!" is an apocalypse flipped into sex ballad track coined for the grown and sexy with adult lyrical content but solid beat. "Biggest Fan" takes a turn for the freaky with opening lines like "You would think we in a waterbed / All the sheets are soaked." Brown takes inspiration from Silk's "Freak Me" with a more radio-friendly sound for his other single "Sweet Love" and then reverts back to a "party boy" with the single "Strip" ft. Kevin McCall.
After a step into the R&B and pop genre, Brown's next tracks become more geared towards the type of music he is known for: dancing. Experimenting with EDM, dubstep, electronica, and plenty of auto-tune, this part of Fortune loses its diversity but keeps the fun element.
Although years in the industry, it is obvious that Brown has still some growth and maturity to do. Fortune's sound picks off where F.A.M.E. left off but doesnt seem as different or innovative this go around. It is obvious that Brown may realize that his album is not his best effort as well after creating controversy before the album dropped (bottle fight with Drake's entourage), releasing several tracks like "Calypso" that will not be found on either the regular or deluxe version, and alluding to his departure from music on this year's BET Awards. Creating controversy and working fans' sympathy seems to be a gimmick that Brown knows how to do well, along with performing, but I feel the same way about this album as I did about F.A.M.E.: its ok.
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