POP WILL EAT ITSELF
Minimal melodic movement combined with endless repetitive singalong hooks define Maroon 5‘s safe formula to success in the modern pop world. Perfect for its target audience i.e. casual music listeners who want their music easy to digest. The banal “Daylight” is a prime example of how this formula works.
The cliched chord progression is I IV V | vi IV I | IV V I | I IV V for the verse and I vi IV I for the chorus. Music students will recognize this as very diatonic progressions which suggests very basic songwriting ideas but familiar and comfortable to mainstream ears. Thus what is lacking in songwriting sophistication is compensated in the song production department. Gimmicky use of autotune, generic electronic sounds and basic hip hop influences ensure that Maroon 5‘s target audience does not need to think too much about the music. Meaning that the music on Overexposed will be best enjoyed in the background whilst the listener conducts more important activities – like indulging in social media.
The techniques used on “Daylight” is replicated for all the other songs on Overexposed. It’s pretty difficult to distinguish one song from another on this album and that’s the cynical beauty of Maroon 5. The band is not about artistry with a distinctive message instead it’s all about selling the music at all costs. Not that there’s anything wrong with that per se but if you are a music lover (or profess to be one), then it’s got to be much more than the kind of pop music manufactured by Maroon 5.
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