Hands all over: More like originality all over.

Hands All Over

Maroon 5

Released: September 21

Octane Records

Grade: C

Three years after their last album, It Won’t be Soon Before Long, American rock group Maroon 5 returned last week with their third studio album, Hands All Over, bringing their unique funky sound to the table yet again with 15 brand new songs.

While the album as a whole has been met with mixed reactions, the first single, Misery reached number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 after being released in June.

Hands All Over starts out on a high note with Misery, which showcases the band’s classic rock-funk sounds, and the sultry falsetto of lead singer, Adam Levine, which fans have come to expect. The song itself features an upbeat pop feel, with the dark undertones that have become a signature of the band. The classic Maroon 5 sound of Misery is easy to get into and hard to not sing along with. Despite the merits of Misery as a catchy pop single, it also possesses an unoriginal flair as it sounds incredibly similar to their previous single, This Love, from their most famous album, Songs About Jane.

Give A Little More gives listeners a chance to appreciate the skills of Jesse Carmichael, the band’s guitarist, with a funky opening guitar riff that’s hard to resist. The vocals, while not as catchy as some of the band’s previous songs still feature the typical sound and feel of the band, and make Give A Little More an enjoyable listen.

The album definitely falters with Never Gonna Leave This Bed, which has a slower beat than the rest of the songs, and is completely forgettable, and one that listeners will probably skip more often than not. This track also marks the decline of the album, beginning a streak of songs that while not intolerable, also don’t leave the listener wanting more. By the end of Hands All Over, most of them end up sounding pretty much the same.

The bonus tracks however, are definitely worth a listen, featuring some live and acoustic renditions of some of the earlier album tracks. Also included in the bonus material are two cover tracks, where Lavine takes on the sounds of Alicia Keys, and Freddie Mercury with If I Aint Got You, and Crazy Little Thing Called Love.

Overall, though Hands All Over doesn’t completely fall flat, it also doesn’t define the band, or do more than provide a few more catchy singles to their resume. While people who are already fans of the band will probably enjoy the new tracks on the album, people who haven’t already come to love Maroon 5 will not be convinced to jump on the bandwagon.