ALBUM REVIEW: JOHN MAYER - 'BATTLE STUDIES'

With an impressive seven Grammys on his mantle, John Mayer looks to add more with his fourth studio album, Battle Studies.

With the album, Mayer hopes to tackle the biggest task of removing the focus from his personal life and back on the platform that made him famous in the first place, his music. “I really worried about the overexposure of my face and life, and was concerned if my music would still affect people,” Mayer said.

“I’ve never liked that image. In terms of the real me, the one who plays music and the other one on covers of magazines, well one of those things comes from me and another comes from other people.”

“It’s nice to have full ownership of me again. I can’t tell you the weight that’s been lifted off my shoulder,” he added.

Selected Track Analysis:

“All We Ever Do Is Say Goodbye”: Describing the cycle of an on and off again relationship, the cut sees Mayer pledging his love, but also being fully aware that trying again will result in the same outcome. His vocal delivery is tender and it has a slight feel that recalls the Beatles, but ultimately it works.

“Half of My Heart”: Featuring some brief harmonizing from starlet Taylor Swift, he acknowledges not fully giving his heart away, yet he still can’t stop loving with half of his heart. It’s a solid offering with smooth and pretty melodies.

“Who Say”: On the disappointing lead single, he asks the budding question: “Who says I can't get stoned?” It has folk elements and marks a vast departure from the quality of his past single selections, which he acknowledges by saying “Who says I can't be free, from all of the things that I used to be?” It takes a while to really discover the message, which is in a sense about the need for freedom and self-identity, but regardless it still fails to strike the right chord.

Among the other cuts dealing with heartbreak and relationships are the stellar “Perfectly Lonely”, the table-turning “Assassin” and the opening selection “Heartbreak Warfare”.

“Edge of Desire”: Enhanced by rich vocals, the cut shows Mayer wanting somebody back because he feels he may become nothing more than a distant memory to her. The lyrics are quite solid, but it is actually the other auras of the track that reels it into meaningful territory.

“Friends, Lovers or Nothing”: Bring the album to a close, he asks the question of where a courtship is headed and notes it can only be one of the three, and marks an accurate close to an album relying heavily on the trails of relationships.

Final Verdict:

While Mayer may have gone into the project trying to place the focus back on the music, with the records lacking variety pass the bounds of relationships, one can’t help but note it seems to highlights the battles of his personal life.

Mayer is undeniably talent and has an ability that rivals that of the industry’s best, but the guy that crafted memorable and timeless hits such as “Your Body is a Wonderland”, “Daughters” and “Waiting on the World” is absent more than he tends to be present.

3 out of 5

Celebrity Bug’s Key Tracks:

“Heartbreak Warfare”, “All We Ever Do Is Say Goodbye”, & “Perfectly Lonely”.