This was certainly the most gigantically ambitious pop record of the decade; Timberlake was trying to make his
Thriller with Timbaland to Michael's Quincy Jones, and he didn't quite succeed, but what's there is choice: the first half of this record is one of the most consistent runs of pop music anyone's pulled off yet, and even the second half has some amazing weirdness ("Losing My Way"? What the hell is
that?). Weirdness is the order of the day here, with "Sexy Back" almost purposely annoying with its stuttering, whiny organ and incomprehensible vocal repetition. Timberlake almost seems to be channeling Trent Reznor's more funky stuff on the title track, and the two gigantic "suites" that sit in the center of the record are so perfectly written and arranged that time seems to stop as you listen to them. There is no more debased genre than MTV-friendly pop music, and anyone who attempts to revive it with real creativity and songwriting deserves kudos. Timberlake could have just recorded twelve more versions of "Cry Me A River" and called it a day; instead he recorded one of the longest, weirdest, catchiest, most confounding pop albums ever made. The album is so surprising that the two generic ballads ("Until the End of Time" and "Another Song (All Over Again)") are twice as disappointing when they finally show up. But hey--just skip 'em.
MY RATING:
9.0
Justin Timberlake - "Love Stoned - I Think She Knows (Interlude)"
No comments:
Post a Comment