Maroon 5 – V (Vinyl LP)

True to its title, V represents the fifth full-length studio effort from Grammy Award winning superstars Maroon 5. Considering that career benchmark, Maroon 5’s latest provides a sonic summation of the group’s journey to date – capturing the essence of the earliest M5 hits through to their most recent successes, as well as providing a picture of its artistic growth into the future. Bringing it all back home, V also marks the return of M5’s original keyboardist Jesse Carmichael to the fold, rejoining frontman Adam Levine, guitarist James Valentine, bassist Mickey Madden, drummer/percussionist Matt Flynn, and keyboardist PJ Morton after a two-year hiatus. V also builds on the momentum of the most successful period in M5’s history, re-teaming the band with previous collaborators and featuring some unexpected new friends, too.

For V, Maroon 5 has created a set of irresistible pop juggernauts raising the band’s sound to the next level. V’s lead-off single “Maps” finds Maroon 5 taking the reggae-influenced vibes the group honed on Overexposed hits like “One More Night” to new heights, via an infectious pop-rock meditation on longing and obsession (“I was there for you in your darkest times/I was there for you in your darkest nights”), where Levine’s soulful ,elastic falsetto recalls none other than one of his biggest inspirations, Sting and The Police. It also reteams the songwriting collaboration between Levine and Ryan Tedder (Adele, Beyoncé, One Direction), Benny Blanco (Katy Perry, Britney Spears) and Ammar Malik (Gym Class Heroes, Lady Antebellum, “Moves Like Jagger”).