Why Shock Value II Isn't as Good as the First

"Oh, Timbaland, where you gon' run to?"

I cannot tell you how disappointed I was once "Shock Value II" (2009) by Timbaland came out.  Now, as far as ratings go, "Timbaland Presents Shock Value" (2007) didn't do much better, it had an overall score of 54 whereas "Shock Value II" only dropped four points to a 50.  However, there are three reasons in particular why Timbaland's second round of Shock Value isn't as good as his first.

1. Beats

To start off light, Timba's beats aren't nearly as catchy as in his first album.  He had fun playful beats in songs like "The Way I Are" and "Give It To Me," he had heavier beats in songs like "Bounce" and "Apologize," not to mention his incredibly unique beats in songs like "Oh, Timbaland" and "Bombay."  His second album however really is lacking in this department outside of a select few songs ("Carry Out" and "If We Ever Meet Again" among them). 

2. "Oh my goodness, [Timbaland has] built in auto-tune!" (Name the song and you win forever)

This second point bothered me a lot.  Timbaland had a few different songs in his first album where he used auto-tune, but it was relatively limited.  For the most part he rapped and was pretty good at it.  To put it in perspective for you, in his first album he uses it a few times, maybe three times, the only stand out song being his hit "The Way I Are;" even then, its very subtle and adds more of a vibrato if anything.  In his second album, Timbaland uses auto-tune heavily in eight different songs, not to mention lightly in several others; the album only has 17 tracks in total, you do the math.  Why is Timbaland using auto-tune so heavily?  Well, as far as I can gather from listening to the album its because he wants to sing.  His first album only had a few instances where he really relied on singing, whether it be verses or choruses.  In his second album, in nearly every song, either a verse or chorus has Timbaland singing with the help of auto-tune.  You're not T-Pain, Timba, there's a reason why people respect you more than him, but you're tarnishing you're reputation.

3. Guest Appearances

This, in my opinion, is what hurt Timbaland's second album the most.  In Timbaland's first album, you could tell right away that he knew EVERYONE.  He had collaborators that were familiar faces, such as Justin Timberlake, Kari Hilson, and Nelly Furtado, to ones that were completely out of left field, like Elton John, The Hives, and M.I.A.  Now, while some of these people return in his second album (namely the familiar faces), Timba has a completely different list of guest appearances.  Let me name a few for you: Jojo, Drake, Chad Kroeger (lead singer of Nickelback), Miley Cyrus, Katy Perry, The Fray, Daughtry, Jet.  Do you notice a patern?  Each of these artists has had some sort of break in the MTV mainstream culture.  Jojo was a teen sensation a few years ago, Katy Perry broke out onto MTV last year, Daughtry originated from American Idol, and we don't need to mention Miley Cyrus.  Timbaland has taken a drastic turn towards the pop scene and left his creative sound in the dust.  Where on his first album he used Elton John's piano styling and The Hives abrasive yet unique sound to create new and exciting tracks, in his second he tries to appeal to what is "now."  Drake is a new pop hip-hop artists that is "now" (How do I know this?  He was on a Sprite commercial) and Miley Cyrus is currently, and regrettably, the face of teenage girls across America.  

Now, in all fairness, after listening to "Shock Value II" over the past couple of days, its not nearly as bad as what I had first thought and that's probably because I had really, REALLY high expectations.  I thought "Carry Out" was a stupid track, but after comparing it to "Bounce" from his first album, I realized they were counterparts.  I can't help but laugh when Timbaland compares a woman to an IHOP.  Secondly, although I don't approve of his turning towards more "now" guest appearances, some don't do a terrible job, namely Katy Perry and, as much as I hate to say it, Miley Cyrus (her song is set-up much better for her than are the songs for Chad Kroeger and Daughtry, which are unimpressive to say the least).  Overall, Timbaland really needs to go back to finding a unique sound rather than what's "now."  His first album was so unique and creative that it deserves more credit than it originally received.  Also, I cannot stress this enough, LAY OFF THE AUTO-TUNE!  Its fun sometimes, yes, but not for nearly every single song.  Remember where you came from Timba: You're an excellent producer and not a half bad rapper, however, singing is not in the cards for you.  I hope Shock Value III is better than II.  With that being said, I would highly recommend listening to "Timbaland Presents: Shock Value."  Take a listen here and if you really want to, "Shock Value II" is here.

"Timbaland Presents: Shock Value": 87/100

"Shock Value II": 58/100