It’s been 5 years since JT dropped the 20/20 experience. Fans have been patiently waiting for new music from their favorite N’Sync star, but were less than impressed when they finally got their hands on “Man Of The Woods” Justin Timberlake’s 5th studio album. Critics held nothing back when expressing their feelings about the album, check out some of the brutal reviews below.
Also stating “As Timberlake gears up for his Super Bowl halftime show performance on Sunday, it’s telling that his best new songs are purposefully retro. And as he cycles through his greatest hits during Sunday’s set, it’ll be a reminder of a time when Timberlake was among the most exciting names in pop, an era that, from the sounds of Man of the Woods, has since passed”
Adding “It’s remarkable how few ideas are contained within this hour-plus Blue Ridge Mountains mood board of an album. Man of the Woods is a misstep large enough to merit relitigating Justin Timberlake’s status as a pop superstar. How much of his career should we chalk up to fortune, privilege, and an essential malleability?”
The Daily Beast says ” ‘Lemonade’ and ‘4:44,’ this is not.”
“In this climate, Timberlake has become inessential. Hence, Man of the Woods, his purported attempt to strip down to the basics and reveal what’s behind the pop veneer in the way that his contemporaries have. Unfortunately, the album reveals that there’s … nothing there.”
‘Esquire’ called it “a mess” and “kind of embarrassing.”
“Well, I’m here to tell you a little bit of good news: Man of the Woods is not a country album. It’s more like deep-fried Justin Timberlake. It’s like stumbling across some awkward campfire party in a clearing in the middle of a forest. It’s like eating a handful of poison berries from a bush and finding yourself scared, confused, nauseous, and lost among the foliage … It’s his infamous denim suit resurrected as music.”
Stereogum calls it a literal “shrug of an album.”
“Man Of The Woods plays as an hour-long contented sigh, a born-entertainer cheeseball doing his very best to make his transition into rural-dad middle age.”
Not all the reviews were bad though, Rolling Stone gave it a 3.5/5 and Variety said: “it’s hard to imagine anyone who ever liked Timberlake not having a blast for most of the duration of Man of the Woods.”
What are your thoughts on the album? Tweet us @U92slc with your reviews!
Nikki Rae
IG: iamnikkirae
Twitter: iamnikkiraexo
