REVIEW: Justin Timberlake's FutureSex/LoveSounds and Summit Avenue's ReEmergence

REVIEW: Justin Timberlake's FutureSex/LoveSounds and Summit Avenue's ReEmergence

One hit song can sell an album—unfortunately…And a band you WANT to be listening to but probably haven't heard of -- YET!

With great anticipation that I am sure was shared by many, I purchased Justin Timberlake's new album/CD, FutureSex/LoveSounds. I had heard the song SexyBack and frankly, I'm crazy over that one song. I wasn't able to get the CD single, since it was sold out, so I did what many would do, I bought the album—knowing full well that often an album has other gems that don't get as much coverage as a hit single.

Not this time, unfortunately.

I know a great deal of work went into the album and I appreciate the talented efforts of Timberlake et al, however, for me, it was a bust. If it wasn't for the fact that it has SexyBack on it, I'd want my money back. One hit song can indeed sell an album.

SexyBack is clever, original, interesting and inventive. The music takes hold of you and keeps you interested, the lyrics are fairly normal but with enough twists that you actually find yourself listening. The melody is catchy and yet the clever twists (Take it to the bridge! Take it to the chorus!) play with the idea of musical construction and keep a sense of humor about it at the same time. It sets the song apart from other songs. It's a fusion of hip hop, rap and pop with enough differences and unique twists to set it apart from any genre as well. It demands your attention and doesn't disappoint.

However, the rest of the album tries but fails to keep up with that commanding performance. The fusion doesn't work here, and as well produced and high quality as it obviously was, it just doesn't measure up to SexyBack. It's the same as hundreds of other hip hop, rap, or pop mixes. The other tracks are less interesting, not clever, repetitive and often lacking in emotional power or sincerity. They are flat without any surprises. They do not demand your attention and only prove that a marriage of hip hop, rap and pop is too often something that should head for the divorce court as soon as possible.

There were highlights to note. Timberlake is obviously very comfortable (and with a great voice for lyrical) in the more pop/lyrical tracks such as All Over Again and What Goes Around. Also, Losing My Way almost creates the fusion again, but with less success than SexyBack and certainly with less power since it is more lyrical in nature. However, those lyrical songs still lack power and anything compelling enough about them to make you want to listen to them over and over again. Also, Chop Me Up which featured Timbaland and Three 6 Mafia was interesting when Timbaland and Three 6 Mafia were the ones dominating, rather than Timberlake, himself. They stood out, as did Timbaland on SexyBack (though on SexyBack the partnership was balanced…Timbaland did not outshine or upstage Timberlake.)

The album missed the mark of consistency and surprise. It fell short of the high expectation I personally had for it, considering how phenomenal a song SexyBack is—a song that will likely continue on into popularity well beyond the usual fifteen-minutes of fame. Perhaps Timberlake's next album will get the fusion right and more consistently—the potential for something great is there, that's why it's so frustrating that it just didn't gel for me with this album.

On the other hand, Summit Avenue's songs Self Portrait, California Gone, Farewell Song and Room to Breath, all presumably from their album CD release ReEmergence do deliver not only consistency but a high level of interesting, compelling songs that don't sound like "same old, same old."

Since Summit Avenue is an up-and-coming indie band with a soft rock, not quite pop feel, the CD isn't widely available. I didn't feel like chasing all over the state for a copy of the album, nor did I want to wait and order one online. (Hey, I like going into music stores and when I want my music, I don't want to wait on the postal service.) So, I did the next best thing. I went to MySpace and played the four songs mentioned since they are all available off the band's MySpace site, www.myspace.com/summitavenue. (Available as of this writing, that is.)

Now, downloads can be painful experiences and this was no exception. I'd hear a bit, and then there would be the horrible but not unusual pause while the buffering caught up. However, the difference here and it's a big one is this…

With the Timberlake CD, playing smoothly with no problems, I got bored. With the Summit Avenue downloads, with all the bits, pieces, delays, gaps, break-ups and glitches, I kept listening. I liked it enough that I wanted to keep listening—in spite of the problems with the download. All four songs got the same favorable I-want-to-hear-it reaction, though I personally preferred Self Portrait and California Gone over the other two and found the song, Room to Breath, the least interesting and most repetitive.

Chance Walker, the lead vocalist, has an interesting voice with great tonality and an emotional richness that seems to impart sincerity and power to even the most common of lyrics. The lyrics are often simplistic but they also have meaning and signify something. Walker's voice turns them into something intensely emotional and evocative.

While the lyrics have meaning but are easy to remember, so is the melody line, and if that were all there was to the band or the songs, I would've killed the download after the first few seconds. No, running counterpoint to the melody and lyrical prose, there is a deeper instrumental complexity that comes through from the other three band members (David Hall, Ben Coleman and Jared Coleman) that adds to the experience. It makes the songs more interesting and intriguing, without sacrificing enjoyment or that unique emotional connection to the audience.

The songs make good use of music as a way to convey energy and power. Yes, the songs are still shaded with meaning, depth, and emotional rawness or even darkness—but without sacrificing the entertainment value of the music and without sending the listener into too dark a place as a result. Self Portrait, for example, is powerful right from the start, demanding that the listener sit up and pay attention and then proving that that attention is justified in every beat, every note and every raw, emotionally exploding word.

This band deserves more attention than it's getting. It moves you through space with power, strength and a compelling need to embrace every note and word, but it still lets you enjoy the ride.

If I had to choose between the two, I'd still try to find a CD single of SexyBack, but I'd eagerly buy the CD album of Summit Avenue.

Especially since I wouldn't have to worry about the download nightmares anymore. Check them out.

Summit Avenue is currently on tour—mainly the East Coast and Midwest. Their MySpace site has a schedule of events for interested readers, as well as the downloads of the four songs.

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CG Anderson is a 10 year new media provocateur involved in media, art, technology and the online world. Also a writer, blogger and novelist. CG's comments are personal and opinionated and solely the responsibility of the author, so there. Don't like the opinions, disagree, agree, don't know? Great, make a comment—clean ones will be allowed, netiquette-challenged ones will be ignored!
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