Justin Timberlake is the icon of celebrity right now, a man doing so much work under the spotlight that it’s a wonder how he finds free time anymore. His upcoming film, “Runner Runner,” his musical tour with feature partner Jay-Z and constant late-night promotionskeep his day-to-day so hectic, one has to wonder if his four NSYNC stars are posing as him at press events.
“The 20/20 Experience 2 of 2,” the second album of his grandiose comeback year, follows in many of the same steps that the first album treaded. The album is a pop-filled showcase of Timberlake’s incredibly varied styles, with songs reaching anthemic quality through length alone.
Though where the previous album found a flow to its R&B-influenced; rhythms, “2 of 2” falls short of its intended purpose, following Timberlake’s controlling hand as he goes from the man who rocked the world in 2006 to a matured, jazz bandleader.
Each song is even extensively longer than those of his previous effort, averaging around six minutes each, and demands much out of the vocal and instrumental orchestration their respective genres ask for. “Take Back The Night,” a disco hit of power chords and choruses, grabs for everything that Michael Jackson had in his peak. “Drink You Away” is as bluesy as pop can get, channeling Timberlake’s common love-fueled lyrics with a drunken-crowd mantra.
Both of these songs, or any others within the same genre-symbolizing vein, are sure to rock the stadium when Timberlake performs them with their singalong hooks. But neither channels the height that the artist used to.
Previous albums jumped off the fun, synthetic and dance-worthy hits that they featured. Such was the case with “My Love,” one of the biggest pop classics of the decade, and “Suit & Tie,” a musical welcome-back banner for an artist who was sorely missed. “2 of 2” hardly has those moments, and if it does, they end up hopelessly lost behind the excessive minutes of repeated beats that so many of the album’s other songs have.
The album feels suspiciously like a collection of outtakes, a mosh of songs rejected for use on this year’s earlier composition.Yet, the songs are catchy enough to make Timberlake want the world to hear them. It would appear to be a grab for money, or just a call for more attention, if it weren’t by one of the biggest stars in the industry. But with such a busy schedule and constant devotion to his fans, his work reflects the good intentions of pleasing fans and remaining relevant.
It’s unfortunate that the results fall flat, though it’s a wonder where the results came from. “True Blood,” the album’s second track, which should hook the listener in with as compelling means as possible, clocks in at over nine minutes with one of the album’s less engaging hooks. After around an hour of similar repetitions, the last track, the simplistic ballad “Not a Bad Thing,” followed by a horrifyingly outdated and hidden acoustic effort, “Pair of Wings,” lose any remaining fans that may have stayed for the ride.
Fans of Timberlake will enjoy the look into the artist’s simpler beats and lyrics that channel the musician’s peculiarly changing techniques, and even some reminders of the pop eras of “No Strings Attached” and “Justified.” He’s evoking as much glamour and groove as he has been for the last year, but the inside feels lackluster and worn from the exposure.