by Alex Henderson
When Immature debuted in 1992 with On Our Worst Behavior, there were those who compared the preteen urban contemporary trio to the Jackson Five and early New Edition. The problem with that comparison was that the members of those groups were better singers and had far superior material to work with. By the time The Journey came out in 1997, the members of Immature were 15 and had improved somewhat. Lead vocalist Marques "Batman" Houston hadn't turned into a great singer by any means, but some of the material on this CD is decent, including the Keith Sweat produced "Extra Extra," the moody, flamenco-influenced "Tamika" and the haunting "24/7," which was produced by Marc Gordon of Levert fame. The Journey also has its share of throwaways, and on the whole, the album isn't all that memorable. It's best to pass.