SHAZAM

‘Stereo Hearts’ is far from being the first time that Gym Clas Heroes have supplemented their essentially hip-hop sound with vocals from a more traditionally ‘rock’ source. The band are signed to Pete ‘Fall Out Boy’ Wentz’s Fueled By Ramen label and have regularly collaborated with Wentz’s bandmate Patrick Stump. Bringing Maroon 5’s Adam Levine on board makes perfect sense.

Featuring a massive star like Levine on your track is never going to hurt, but the band insist that the collaboration happened for artistic rather than monetary reasons. Speaking to The Aquarian, drummer Matt McGinley said: “When we went in to record ‘Papercut Chronicles’, I actually brought in a copy of [Maroon Five’s debut album] ‘Songs About Jane’, and I said, “I want my drums to sound like this.” I sort of blended the styles of Maroon 5 and Questlove, and that’s what I came up with. Overall, it’s crazy to see something like that come full circle to the point where we’re actually working with Adam Levine directly.”

The collaboration also paid off recently when the band ran into Levine on a studio lot in L.A. After jamming the song a few times, they were invited to perform on TV show ‘The Voice’, where Levine moonlights as a judge.

‘Stereo Hearts’ sticks to the trademark upbeat hip-hop that made 2007 single ‘Cupid’s Chokehold’ such a smash. It’s the first track to be revealed from forthcoming album ‘The Papercut Chronicles II’, scheduled for release in October. The band’s decision to echo the title of their debut record clearly positions it as a return to their roots. Based on ‘Stereo Hearts’, it sounds like Gym Class Heroes are very glad to be home.

You can check out the video here

AUTHOR: Huw Thomas