Album Review: Justin Timberlake - The 20/20 Experience

Justin Timberlake
The 20/20 Experience
Rating: Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It

Justin Timberlake's trajectory has been interesting to follow, what with leaving his mega-million selling boy band N'Sync to release his hit spilling debut record Justified, then completely going off the wall with his second album FutureSex/LoveSounds' robo-disco-funk. After a long 6 year hiatus from making music and focusing on his film career, Timberlake resurfaces with the Timbaland produced The 20/20 Experience. Those expecting another complete reinvention of his sound will be slightly disappointed as the record basically splits the difference between his more pop leaning inclinations and his experimental creations. Where he reigns in the weirdness of his last record a bit, he allows his tracks lots of breathing room, with only two tracks coming in under 6 minutes, and several well over 7 minutes long. For the most part, this approach works, giving the tracks intros, bridges, and codas, but too often these lengthy run times just seem like a case of poor editing, with several instances where the tracks can drag on interminably.

Of course for me, the best tracks are where Timberlake and Timbaland stretch their wings and try for something different than the norm. Specifically, The 20/20 Experience soars in the middle of the record with the trio of brilliant tracks "Don't Hold The Wall," "Strawberry Bubblegum," and "Tunnel Vision." "Don't Hold The Wall" starts out as a doo-wop like track before quickly getting weird with off-kilter percussion, and odd vocal samples, sounding more like M.I.A. than Timberlake; kicking into high gear midway with some sub-bass and mix of chanted vocals and dialogue samples.



"Strawberry Bubblegum" is an old school R&B sex jam in the Barry White mold, but subverted into a whisper, featuring lots of ambient textures and elements that pushes it more into EDM territory than R&B.



"Tunnel Vision" is probably the weirdest track, and therefore the most interesting. Jittery percussion and hyper-real samples dart in and out of each other, while Timberlake's voice is multitracked into gorgeous harmonies.



The one revelation on The 20/20 Experience is the closing track "Blue Ocean Floor" which sounds like a Frank Ocean song performed by Radiohead. Over sublime ambient keyboards and reversed pianos, Timberlake's haunted voice remains in complete control, moving easily between his lower register and falsetto, detailing a relationship falling apart with neither party able to make headway, Timberlake giving up trying, singing "If my red eyes don't see you anymore/And I can't hear you through the white noise/Just send your heartbeat I'll go to the blue ocean floor/Where they find us no more."



Despite these amazing tracks, the remainder of The 20/20 Experience is a bit of a mixed bag. Too often, the more pop/R&B tracks are hindered by the lengthy times. Songs like "Pusher Love Girl," "This Girl," and "Spaceship Coupe" are just not very interesting enough to warrant their length. First single "Suit & Tie" is standard JT by the numbers, though "Let The Groove In" picks up some pace, channeling some Off The Wall era Michael Jackson, but all momentum is lost with the extraordinarily maudlin ballad "Mirrors" which is sure to make its way on to many wedding playlists, awash in its sentimental Diane Warren-esque lyrics.

Ultimately, The 20/20 Experience feels like a holding pattern for Timberlake. While I appreciate that he is first and foremost a pop star, he has shown time and time again that when he does things out of the ordinary, he shines much brighter. The album for me is still very listenable and frequently brilliant, but its those pesky moments where he seems like he is on autopilot that it derails itself. I suppose I was just expecting much more from him this go around.

Rating Scale:

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and piques one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.