If nothing else, you can’t say Bon Jovi aren’t consistent. Listening back to the 1986’s ‘Slippery When Wet’ and 1992’s still-great ‘Keep The Faith’, it’s clear that they had the stadium rock formula down to a tee: big, hook-filled choruses, frequent guitar noodling, obnoxiously reverbed drums and lyrics that, well, weren’t really that important but were nice and accessible to all, from hormonal teenagers to average Joe Sixpack. Can you honestly admit you don’t love Living On A Prayer and You Give Love A Bad Name? Of course not.

That was the late ’80s/early ’90s. The problem is, in 2013, America’s adored blue-collar rockers are relying far too heavily on the same sonic blueprint that they established two decades ago, and it’s all sounding very tired and dated. The 21st century has seen Bon Jovi play a very safe game: all five albums they’ve released, while not necessarily unlistenable, are comfortable and predictable at best, cynical cash-ins at worst. The winning formula is desperately in need of some sort of reinvention.

Somewhat sadly, their latest release, 2013’s ‘What About Now?’, shows no signs of deviating from the well-trodden path, and is arguably the weakest of their post-2000 releases. Opener and lead-single Because We Can sounds strikingly lethargic and irritatingly overproduced until guitarist Richie Sambora’s melodic bridge offers some sort of saving grace. I’m With You, Pictures Of You and the title track follow in much the same vein, unambitious and over familiar rockers, that show little in the way of innovation or new ideas. Of course there are ballads aswell, most nauseatingly on Amen where Jon Bon Jovi (vocals, of course) veers uncomfortably close to self-parody, singing about “honeysuckle on her lips/sweeter than a man deserves to taste”. Notable highlights are difficult to come by, but What’s Left of Me sees Jon channelling his inner-Springsteen as he makes a surprisingly moving state of the nation address, and Sambora does himself justice. Still a fine player, he’s capable of the usual obnoxious flashiness, but also demonstrates some impressively tasteful, textural playing. For the most part though, it’s predictable, it’s comfortable, it’s by-the-numbers rock built for America FM.

The cynical side of me wants to believe that ‘What About Now?’ is a blatant cash-in by a band desperately clinging to relevance, but the reality is probably a bit sadder, and a bit colder. Bon Jovi have been in slow decline for about a decade now, and this album just screams of a band in stasis, unsure of their place in contemporary culture, trapped by a sound that they helped create nearly three decades ago. It doesn’t have to be this way though. The trio of recent releases by Bob Dylan, Van Morrison and David Bowie, all great albums in their own right, attest to the idea that growing older doesn’t have to go hand-in-hand with playing it safe, or phoning it in. Going by the standard set by their peers, there’s really no excuse for not at least trying something new. They’ve shown they’re capable of it in the past. For now though, were left with “What About Now”, the difficult, sad sound of a band trapped by their own nostalgia.