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"A Fifth of Soul, on the Rocks, with a Twist"
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Maroon 5 -- "Songs About Jane" 2003 (Octone Records)
The first time I heard Maroon 5's lead single, I thought I was listening to the latest from Justin Timberlake.
No wait, come back! . . . Seriously, I hadn't given the song a very thorough listen, so at the time I offhandedly compared it to JT's latest Michael Jackson-influenced jams. And for some reason, I still enjoyed "Harder to Breathe" -- though I hated myself for it. Then after probably 20 listens on the radio, I heard someone name the band as Maroon 5, and I was allowed to breathe a little easier, because I discovered this band played their own instruments! They were being called a great soul hope! The next best thing to Jamiroquai! A great indie band through and through. This reviewer was relieved to have finally heard a band with the balls to rock with a soulful edge that had actually caught Clear Channel's ear.
Flash forward to today, as the band's second single "This Love", which is perhaps the catchiest single so far this year, is climbing the charts and getting VH1 airplay out the ass. And I have finally gotten my hands on their debut album! This slim piece of plastic holds 46 minutes of pure, addictive joy. Once you put "Songs About Jane" into your stereo, you're going to need to prepare yourself, because it's been a long time since I've heard soul grooves as catchy as these. You have been warned.
Eight quick beats in succession and the first single hits you. A few moments later, you hear the second. If you keep listening, beyond what you may or may not have already heard all over the airwaves, you may just start to hear the vast array of musical influences that have collided to form the essence of this album. "Shiver," the third song on the album, is at once completely original in sound, and yet it has the essence of Michael Jackson at his greatest, yet without the cloying sense of outright redundancy I hear when I get this sound from the likes of Timberlake. The guitars crunch, and the beats are just off-kilter enough to get your mind pulsing. Before you know it, you're in too deep to get back out . . . but who cares! "I won't be satisfied 'till I'm under your skin!" sings lead singer Adam Levine, and you know it's true; he's under yours already.
The album is full of standout tracks. By the time you reach "Tangled," you're being hit with a little more Stevie Wonder mixed in with the Jamiroquai grooves. "Must Get Out" starts out as tinkling piano and a bass line, and then you're sucked into the chorus as the rhythmic vocals speed up. Then while you're reeling you get hit by another high energy burst with "Through With You" as Adam's woe-filled lyrics heat up even more. "You lay in bed, thinking about everything you did not do," he sings, "because saying 'I love you' has nothing to do with meaning it!" Sing it, brother, we've all been there. The other tracks on the album are just as good, don't be surprised if you find there are no duds. It's simply crafted that well!
After repeated listens to the full length of "Songs About Jane," I feel good about giving it my recommendation. While occasionally the pop elements of the album allow the grooving sounds of a soulful blend to slip back enough for bits of an N'Sync-esque sound to cut through, the moments are certainly fleeting. Each of the 12 tracks paints a different sonic picture, and when you listen to the album as a whole you allow yourself to be enveloped in music that I would have to call soulful pop at its best. I am confident that if more bands were releasing albums that are as thoughtfully crafted as this one, we'd be hearing a lot less about the woes of the record industry.
Rating: ****
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