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PAST TENSB THE 20/20 EXPERIENCE
Matthew Millen
Staff Writer
MattMillen728@gmail.com
For all intents and purposes, Justin
Timberlake is obsessed with the past. Take the
title of his first album, Justified, for instance.
Moreso a ploy for legitimacy than a (not too)
clever pun, the album’s title is commentary on
Timberlake’s quest for validation in spite of
his inescapable identity as part of the bubble
gum boy band N’Sync. Then, for his second
album, Futuresex/Lovesounds, he released the
single “Sexyback,” essentially a song about
restoring the “sexy” feeling of yesteryear that
the then-contemporary pop sound had gotten
away from (it’s still hilarious). Coupled with
the fact that the album cover and insert fea
tured a dapper Timberlake violently smashing
a disco ball —a resounding metaphor for the
denouncement of disco (a genre of music that
he somewhat explored on his first album) —
the LP seemed like yet another episode in
Timberlake’s obsessive saga.
Subsequently, in a somewhat puzzling
move, Timberlake, along with Specific Media,
purchased the social media dinosaur Myspace
with the intentions of restoring the site to its
former glory and making it a hub for musi
cian/fan interaction. All things considered, it
should come as no surprise that Justin Tim
berlake’s new album, the 20/20 Experience
(released Tuesday, March 15—his first since
2006), has such a name.
In a matter similar to yet different than
Futuresex/Lovesounds, the album is divided
into two relatively outdated sounds: first, the
unorthodox hip-hop bounce that was formerly
found on 2000-era Timbaland productions,
and second, the more mature, soul-infused
groove that was formerly found on your par
ent’s vinyl records. Though Timberlake does
both quite well, listeners may inevitably draw
comparisons between the Justin Timberlake
found on this album and the other well-known
blue-eyed soul crooner, Robin Thicke.
The album begins with “Pusher Love
Girl,” a funky tune about being addicted to
a woman’s ... product, like drugs. The song,
based around a steady rhythm and cut with
orchestral strings, finds Timberlake doing his
best Prince impression before switching to a
pseudo-rap how for the vintage Timberland
sound that is introduced almost 5 minutes
into the song. Most of the album is like this:
groove-based and somewhat long-winded, but
creative enough to keep listeners interested.
Although threaded throughout the
album in the form of preludes and postludes,
the soul sound truly emerges on songs like
the Philly soul ode “Suit & Tie” and “That
Girl;” however, the album's apex comes when
Timberlake ditches the soul-crooner shtick
and embraces the chemistry that Timberlake
and Timbaland previously established on Fu
turesex/Lovesounds. Songs like “Don’t Hold
the Wall,” “Tunnel Vision,” and “Mirrors,”
work with instead of against Timberlake and
Timbaland’s chemistry, providing fans with
the circa-2000 pop sound that they’ve been
impatiently waiting for. Those songs, along
with the hauntingly pulsating “Strawberry
Bubblegum” and the wondrous ballad “Blue
Ocean Floor,” are the best songs, and may
warrant repeated.
Frankly, the only missteps on the al
bum come in the form of “Let the Groove Get
In,” a samba-influenced song based around the
refrain “let the groove get in,” and Timber-
lake’s lyrics. Some of the lyrics are downright
laughable; lines like “so thick, now I know
why they call it a fatty,” fall fiat. Moreover,
Timberlake and Timbaland don’t truly step
outside of their comfort zone on this album,
but when your comfort zone sounds as good
as theirs, you don’t really need to.
All in all, the album functions as
Justin Timberlake’s personal time capsule,
an agent of preservation for listeners in the
future who want to know what Timberlake
used to—and still does—sound like before he
became a movie star. He steps into the role of
curator and revels in it, all the while collecting
historical knick-knacks and enabling listeners
to see them for what they were, proving that
hindsight is truly 20/20.
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