Review - Justin Timberlake - The 20/20 Experience

We have waited seven years for Justin Timberlake to come out with a new album, and finally, it has arrived (for better or worse). The R&B/pop crooner took time off after the massive success of ‘Future Sex/Love Sounds’ to focus on acting and to get married (and win a couple of Emmys after appearing on Saturday Night Live about a hundred and fifty times). So, after all that time and everything he’s been doing, you’d think his new music would be something we haven’t heard and spectacular, yes?

‘The 20/20 Experience’ ended up being exactly what I thought it would be: all Timbaland and horns, horns, horns. Don’t get me wrong – Timbo and Justin make a great team, and together they have created some of the coolest and most innovative pop music of the past decade…it’s just…what else is there? JT’s new album plays like a collection of album tracks off his last two CDs, mostly the sophomore effort.

Since he’s aged, the tone of ’20/20’ is more sophisticated, but that certainly doesn’t always work out. If you were looking for another “Sexy Back” or “My Love”, forget it. Instead, get used to the dapper stylings of the horn section backing him up on “Suit & Tie” (which might be a better song without Jay-Z cramping the four plus minutes.

Mouth sounds (what else should I call this) are also unsurprisingly present. Think of the beatboxing you heard on “Lovestoned/I Think She Knows” and you’ll get what I’m talking about. Mix those with the brass quintet and make everything a bit too long (an average of seven minutes per song), and you get this LP. While it certainly isn’t a bad take, the album is certainly lacking a big hit. This might be Justin’s version of Beyonce’s ‘4’.

Listen to: “Pusher Love Girl”, “Mirrors”, “That Girl”, “Blue Ocean Floor”

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