I’ll say straight up that I’m not nor ever was an N’sync fan. The 80’s are over and so is the mandate for me to listen to and love pop… I like a bit more substance to my music. But even still, some albums or songs are so catchy, with great beats that even as pop or r&b records they make you run out to the store and purchase them. I thought this was the case w/ Timberlake, as the first single from his Justified had me bop pin’ my head and tapping my toes. No doubt about it, Justin has soul and can sing, so I figured with this new album he would let the whole world know who he is.
Houston, we have a problem… First off, before you notice anything else about Justin’s album the first thing that strikes your mind isnt his vocals or style, but who the producers are. Within 6 seconds of each song it becomes apparent who was on the boards that day i. e.
Neptunes, Timbaland, Mcknight etc. Now, maybe it was Justin’s intention to have as many flavors as possible on the album to show his range, which isnt a bad thing, but I feel that the production overshadows the man on the mic. Justin is never really able to make a song his ‘own’, and that is a key thing with great artists. Even if they dont write or produce a song, great artists have the ability to make it their own, to make it impossible for anyone else sing the song in with quite the same impact- this is not the case with Justin.
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History of Rock and Roll April 28, 2005 Nevermind There possibly isn't an album in history that is as genre defining as Nirvana's Nevermind. Released in 1991, it single handed ly was responsible for the birth of what became to be known as grunge and has gone on to sell over 10 million copies in the United States alone (Stuessy, Joe). It reached number 1 in 1991 and was the first album to bring ...
He does an admirable job with each song, and as I said, the boy can sing… but b / c of his lack of ability to make each song his own, the album sounds a bit schizophrenic or rather like a long impersonation ‘Justin performs Timbaland’ ‘Justin performs Neptunes’ etc. Production should never overwhelm a song, but complement the artist’s style seamlessly (see Aaliyah’s Aaliyah album).
Maybe next album, Justin will have more of an identity to bring to the mic.
And speaking of a lack of identity, that is my next gripe with the album… Justin trying way too hard to be Micheal Jackson. Now to you younger kids out there who cant recall the late 70’s and mid to early 80’s, this may seem like a new sound. But, all you have to do is listen to albums like Off The Wall and Thriller to realize that the King may be gone, but he is not forgotten, as Justin has gone deep into his memory banks to channel the spirit of Micheal on many songs (most noticeably on the song Rock Your Body… when I first heard it, it sounded to me like an amalgam of ‘Billy Jean’ and ‘Rock with you’).
If I were Micheal, I’d be flattered, but I’d also urge Justin to try and cultivate his own musical identity.
This is understandable seeing as Justin was in a group for so long (like Mike) and I imagine the urge to just try and do everything on the first solo album was strong. But I do hope it doesnt take Justin 6 albums to find his own voice like another artist I know who was overwhelmed by his influences (re: lenny) My last gripe is just pure logistics, indicative of the reason why I usually avoid pop albums and most r&b- trite lyrics and formulaic production. Granted, pop music is generally not known for lyrical depth, but it also generally doesnt have lyrics that are downright corny or make me wince either. Quite a number of the songs on justified had lyrics that were ham-fisted and flat-out hokey ‘I want to be your lake, your bay’… huh? … .’ got laid off at your job.
.’ … sorry Justin, but with the amount of money you have, dont expect me to believe you can identify with a lay-off… heh. I could forgive sometimes cheesy lyrics if the songs are good enough, but in this instance it was formulaic song craft that further sabotaged any attempt on my part to downplay the bad lyrics. Again, this is where trying to be like Mike hurt Justin b / c it seemed to me the boy couldn live w / out having some sort of Mike-like bridge in the middle of each song.
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Often, lyrics are created for people to relate to them. It is common for many individuals to feel as though they found a "common ground" with the artist who wrote the lyrics. In John Mayer's song. "Split Screen Sadness", it is very easy to relate to. The music to the song is very influential in setting the mood for the lyrics. Violins and other string instruments add to the sad tone of the song. ...
Again, listen to solo Micheal Jackson from the late 70’s to the late 80 s and you will know what I mean. Jackson (who wrote and writes much of his own material) had a favorite song craft technique of adding a bridge to the middle of his songs then going back to the main hook… which Justin (and Usher of late) dutifully tries to emulate, with moderate success. Now, dont get me wrong, I dont think this album was terrible.
It was a good first effort and I think Justin will be ok in the long run… he has a great voice, can dance, has star quality and has a good team around him. He will learn and grow musically which can only help him. But as an album, Justified leaves a lot to be desired. Of the 13 tracks, only a handful were good enough to warrant repeat play in my cd player. But…
hey, this album will polly go on to sell 4-5 mil copies so what do I know anyway? 2. 9 out of 5 stars – A. N.
