It's been six and a half years since Mr Timberlake released FutureSex/LoveSounds, and marked himself as the king of the monumental pop/R&B hit. His confidence as an entertainer, and his enthusiasm for Timbaland's sweat-dripping, shoulder-nudging, heavy-breathing, distorted production was the perfect mix of sly-winking frivolity and ground-breaking audacity. But six and a half years away from the charts is a long time (even if it's been filled with movie roles and collaborations), and it was always going to be intriguing to see how he re-established himself as a hit-maker.
So perhaps the best aspect of his comeback album is that 32-year-old Timberlake now seems almost unconcerned with the singles chart - and the result is a much more engaging, classy listening experience.
The 10 tracks on The 20/20 Experience clearly ain't angling for radio play - six are over seven minutes, and the rest are close to five or over. But with those extra minutes, and Timbaland in the producer's chair, there's room for tracks to morph and change gears and for sonic exploration.
There are nods to 60s-era Motown, Stevie Wonder chord changes, and Marvin Gaye falsetto, along with some Memphis-style Al Green sway and an almost overarching homage to Prince. Lush strings, pumping horn sections, sweet organ riffs, they're all there, but they're happily folded into an electro, synth-heavy palette, accompanied by throbbing, warm bass pulses, and some trademark choppy percussion.
Opening track Pusher Love Girl might be a little thematically similar to Love Stoned, but its slow groove accompanied by JT's cheerful croon is deeply seductive.
