Timbaland – Timbaland Presents Shock Value
Interscope Records (4/3/07)
Pop / Rap
Timbaland, producer to the stars including Jay-Z, Missy Elliott, Destiny’s Child and Ludacris, gives a very commanding and very hot body of work that makes him a headliner of his own, with his second solo album, Timbaland Presents Shock Value.
Timbaland has gathered the best of the contemporary pop and rock music scene to contribute to this album, including Nelly Furtado, Justin Timberlake, Nicole Scherzinger from The Pussycat Dolls, The Hives, Fall Out Boy and the legendary Elton John.
The hot dance single, “Give It to Me” featuring Furtado and Timberlake, personifies this year’s summer hit. “Bounce” led by Missy Elliott, Justin Timberlake and Dr. Dre, is sexy, frivolous and will need to be edited for radio play, but is hilarious with its Britney Spears reference.
“Kill Yourself” has a Meat Loaf/hip-hop opera feel that would be perfect for a futuristic action thriller. “Throw It On Me,” Timbaland’s newest video, featuring the Hives in Sin City-style videowork with the hot WWE-divas-type works with that knockout concept. “One & Only” will be flying up the rock/pop charts, with the sharpness of Timbaland and rocking Fall Out Boy sound. “Apologize” was a nice surprise, featuring One Republic, and this could have easily gone to Justin Timberlake, but One Republic was the appropriate choice. Hearing this track, I couldn’t help but wonder what amazing work Timbaland would have done with Freddie Mercury. Closing out the album with Elton John, with “2 Man Show” was hot, hot, hot. I’m eager to hear more, I would love a entire album of Elton and Timbaland working together.
The strength of the album is the reason why Timbaland is on the top of the music industry’s list—top-shelf production. Everything flows without feeling unbalanced. It would take a few spins before a new listener could focus on the lyrics because the music is that commanding. There’s never a dull moment with the rocking beats and hip-hop sounds, making this a great album to place in your CD player on full blast.
“You can accomplish anything you put your mind to it if you stay persistent and disciplined,” explains the driven and dedicated Timbaland. Timbaland is unstoppable, breaking boundaries and takes everything a step up from popular to setting the standard.
Rating:
[Editor’s Note: The editor respectfully begs to differ with the views and opinions voiced in this review. For an alternate take on Timbaland Presents Shock Value, see the 4/5/07 review, right here.]
