Review: Timbaland

Review: Timbaland

Timbaland 'Shock Value': Aidin Vaziri | Just how much Timbaland can you take? In the past year, the Virginia producer (born Timothy Mosley) has been everywhere, helming blockbuster singles for Nelly Furtado ("Promiscuous," "Say It Right"), Justin Timberlake ("SexyBack," "My Love") and the Pussycat Dolls ("Wait a Minute"), popping up in videos and joining his proteges onstage. His previous hits with Missy Elliott, Jay-Z and Aaliyah are still all over pop radio. And there's word that he's collaborating with Björk, Coldplay and Duran Duran, while offering career rehabilitation to Britney Spears. Now comes the inevitable solo turn, his first since 1998's "Tim's Bio." For an artist who so desperately seems to crave the spotlight, Timbaland just can't seem to get away from the boldface names that are always standing in his way. "Shock Value" features a genre-busting guest list that includes not only all the usual suspects, but also a few less likely ones, such as Elton John, Fall Out Boy, the Hives, She Wants Revenge and Sri Lankan rapper M.I.A., making it sound more like an installation of the scattered "Now That's What I Call Music" compilation series than his big artistic moment. Even as Timbaland becomes more impossible to escape, he also becomes easier to ignore.