Sarah E. Moffett

What better way to reacclimatize one’s self to D.C. after being far, far away than to brave the Verizon Center for a pop-rock concert and join the salivating masses.

My excuse? My jet-lag made me do it.

Actually, it ran a little deeper than that. Breaking my personal maxim to not attend concerts in venues big enough to host Star Trek conventions, I joined friends for a birthday celebration by braving the Verizon Center for Maroon 5’s performance last night.

In short, my friends need to have birthdays more often. After sipping savory cocktails at Zenga’s, we watched lead singer Adam Levine strut around stage, jam out on the guitar, and milk the audience with clear vocals, hip jarring guitar moves, and a “mature hotness,” as on friend put it. The rest of the band played long, loud, and strong, although I still want someone to explain that lime green cardigan that the lead guitarist was sporting.

(Footage of Chicago concert, which has same staging as last night’s.)

Now for the technical details. And I don’t mean Adam Levine’s hip circumference. We were camped out in the bottom of section 109, which was good and bad. The good was the energy of the floor and above seats was crashing over us in rhythm with Adam Levine’s nearly-aerobic performance. (The man was skipping on stage half way through the energetic set.)  The bad being that we were relying heavily on jumbotrons to see said Levine’s sexy expressions and the band’s jam sessions. So it goes.

Old and new fans were pleased with the setlist, which featured old favorites, new hits, and solid material off their new album, It won’t be soon before long.

Setlist.
“If I Never See Your Face Again”
“Makes Me Wonder”
“Harder to Breathe”
“The Sun”
“Can’t Stop”
“Secret”
“Shiver”
“Wake Up Call”
“Sunday Morning”
“Won’t Go Home Without You”
“This Love”

Encore.
“Little of Your Time”
“She Will Be Loved”
“Sweetest Goodbye”

The band kept the audience on its feet (or until my stupid girl shoes started cutting off my toes’ circulation) for the entire concert. There were no cheap stage tricks or theatrics. There didn’t need to be. Adam, the band, the lyrics, the music, and the energy were more than enough to keep the audience alive and pulsating for the entire concert. This is no small thing since the Verizon Center cuts off cocktails after the first thirty minutes of the concert.

One Soapbox Moment. Does Maroon 5’s under-18 audience begin to get, let alone empathize, with the band’s lyrics? Color me somewhat baffled at the swaying teeny bopper bodies last night that were singing along to “Sunday Morning…steal some covers, share some skin…” with the conviction of saying the pledge of allegiance. Does anyone else find that odd?

I digress. In sum, I have to echo one friend’s closing thought. “I’d totally see them again…[but] preferably at the 9:30 Club next time.” And because I selfishly want to enjoy them less virtually and more personally, I couldn’t agree more.

Other reviews are up at:

The DCist  (Concert Pictures Included)

To Be Continued  (Concert Pictures Included)

Life is short… (A Dad’s Perspective)

Andrea (A Mom’s Perspective)

Money Doesn’t Grow On Trees

Rantings of a Creole Princess

Recent Maroon 5 article:

 Rolling Stone’s Maroon 5: At the Corner of Hollywood and Heartbreak

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