The Walk (2007)

When did Hanson become Maroon 3? As far as the Tulsa trio may seem from their starlet-baiting, Jamiroquai-jacking counterparts, the apple-cheeked brothers have a shockingly similar (if decidedly less slick) funk-rock fixation. Where ''MMMBop,'' the single that put the then adolescents on the map 10 years ago, hinged on a purer pop sound, The Walk feels like a natural progression — the boys are now married (two with children!), after all. At 14 tracks, they clearly could have cut some bar-bandish filler, yet what remains is gratifyingly strong. B+
DOWNLOAD THIS: Great Divide