Variations on Maroon 5
Following up on the success of their hit single ‘Moves Like Jagger’, Maroon 5 fill their new album, Overexposed, with catchy, upbeat tunes made especially for the dance floor. With the band’s upcoming performance in Shanghai on 25 September at the Mercedes-Benz Arena, the band talked earnestly about the future and their aspirations for more eclectic collaborations.
The last time Maroon 5 performed in Shanghai was in 2008, and they played to a packed house of around 3,500 fans. Afterwards lead singer, Adam Levine, commented on how moved he was to experience such a cultural exchange. “The audience was insane. They were singing along to all the songs, every word.”
This time around, using Weibo to connect with their China-based fans, Maroon 5 have excitedly confirmed a second visit to Shanghai as one of the stops on their international Overexposed tour and are every bit as enthusiastic about coming. “Our Chinese fans have been amazing from the start of our career,” says Levine. “They continue to support us and are one of the best audiences to perform for.”
Fans this month can anticipate an upbeat live show packed with new material that sways a long way from Maroon 5’s earlier content. Long gone are the days of pop-rock that Maroon 5 were famous for in the early noughties such as ‘This Love’ and ‘She Will Be Loved’. Instead, fans can look forward to a new sound stretching across genres, with some surprising collaborative efforts.
Most recently, Maroon 5 have been enjoying the success of recent singles including ‘Payphone’ and ‘One More Night’, peaking at #2 and #42, respectively, on the Billboard Hot 100. Their most recent album Overexposed has been lauded by some critics as their strongest production to date. When asked about the experiences that influenced the production of this album, the band members expressed a desire for a reprise of their more recent successes.
“We decided to bring in the team who worked on ‘Moves Like Jagger’ with us. They influenced, encouraged and challenged us to try things differently on the record, which we were eager to do. The result was great and we’re very happy.”
Possibly the most intriguing mix of artistic talents on the album is Maroon 5’s collaboration with American rapper Wiz Kalifa on ‘Payphone’, which riffs on one of Maroon 5’s favourite themes: getting burned by love. Wiz Kalifa’s rap verse on the track adds another dimension of pop-approved charm to the song with its fitting rebuke of a past relationship, quipping “What a shame, could’ve got big. Had a really good game but you missed your last shot, so you talk about who you see at the top, or what you could’ve saw, but sad to say, it’s over.” Indeed.
The pairing with Wiz Kalifa on ‘Payphone’ is just one facet of the new sound that Maroon 5 cultivates on Overexposed. Reggae finds it way into ‘One More Night’; dance pop oohs and aahs couple with fizzling drum brakes on ‘The Man Who Never Lied’; ‘Tickets’ dispenses the guitar after the first few bars for crunching synthesisers. And while all of these new directions excite the band, their enthusiasm to work with the rising rap star shines out.
“Wiz is amazing. We were thrilled when the idea was presented to us that he might be interested in making music with us. The resulting collaboration was awesome. His contribution to the song has helped make it what it is.”
Some might call this chameleon-like shifting of musical genres a form of musical opportunism. However, the band denies that this newest record was made for anyone other than themselves and their own ever-evolving musical tastes.
“We aren’t looking to have a ‘club appropriate sound’, but over the years our style has changed due to where we were at that time in our career. We’ve had a lot of different influences over the last ten years, which listeners may hear on Overexposed. Of course, anytime a song or album has success we’re extremely excited and very grateful, but overall, we put out music that we enjoy making and just hope that our fans like it, too. It means everything to us when we get that reaction from them.”
Maroon 5. 25 September, 8pm. RMB 380 – 1,680. Mercedes-Benz Arena. 1200 EXPO Avenue, near Shiboguan Lu. Web: http://en.piao.com.en/shanghai/ticket_2739.html
