Posted March 18, 2015
By BRANDON MICHAELS
Maroon 5 is an oiled machine at this point. Every other year it releases an album that goes to the top of the chart. The group tours to sell out crowds across the country and do a handful of overseas concerts.
However, this time they decide to be ballsy, just like their front man Adam Levine, who exudes confidence, and go on a world tour. At this point, why not? Maroon 5 was already widely successful in its own niche. Teenage girls loved them and a few guys, myself included, here and there.
With Levine taking a job on NBC’s “The Voice,” Maroon 5 has gone mainstream. Using “The Voice” as a platform, Levine has showcased not only his personality but his skills.
Groups are often defined by their lead singers, and Maroon 5 is no different. The thing that sets it apart, however, is the brotherly love the members all share. They are not “five,” as Levine mentions during the concert, more like Maroon 8 these days with new members like PJ Morton.
The best part of a Maroon 5 concert is always the classics. Encore started “She Will Be Loved” acoustic. Just Adam and guitar player and partner to Adam Levine in many ways, James Valentine, come out on stage and employ the audience to sing along in a round.
Maroon 5 does an excellent job of creating a set list everyone will enjoy. The band includes all the hits and a good spread from all of the albums over the years. The guys do their hits while also going into some of the lesser known songs that reward the true fan who listens to more than the singles. They play their pop songs that make them money, but also the slower songs that they love to play.
I have been to a few Maroon 5 concerts over the past couple years and one of the most exciting parts is seeing the maturation of Adam Levine’s artist, the concerts opening act Rossi Crane. Crane, who was a University of Southern California student when Levine discovered her, has been opening for them on concert and used as a feature artist on a few songs on their set list for years, including “Moves Like Jagger” and “Makes Me Wonder.”
Last month, Crane released her first EP and I was excited to hear her original music for the first time. The best song on the EP is “Painkiller,” unsurprisingly featuring Levine.
For the first time in a few years, the concert ends with something other than “Moves Like Jagger,” opting for the band’s last single “Sugar.” Jagger provided an excitement and left the concert on a high note that “Sugar” does not reach. The encore begins with slow songs, the climax should be the end, not the second to last.
BB&T is by no means the best venue to take in a concert. Packed to capacity, the building opened in 1998 home to the Florida Panthers, was packed to capacity. A crowd mostly filled with female millennials hanging on every word however, would not have known the difference.
Maroon 5 is still one of the best concerts out there. Playing for a little under two hours, it’s a great concert to go to whether you are a diehard fan or just someone who loves music. Great for the kids, if you’re a parent who’s okay with Adam Levine’s sometimes inappropriate side comment.
I know next year I’ll be there, hell I’ll be there Saturday night as MSG.
Set List:
- “Animals”
- “One More Night”
- “Stereo Hearts”
- “Harder to Breathe”
- “Lucky Strike”
- “Wake Up Call”
- “Love Somebody”
- “Maps”
- “This Love”
- “Sunday Morning”
- “Makes Me Wonder”
- “Payphone”
- “Daylight”
- “My Heart Is Open”
- “Lost Stars”
- “She Will Be Loved”
- “Moves Like Jagger”
- “Sugar”