“Man of the Woods” is Justin Timberlake’s fifth solo album and 11th studio album so my biggest fear when listening to it was whether or not Timberlake could make good music while keeping the music new and fresh. Well, he didn’t start off too hot as the first song on the album, “Filthy,” is possibly the worst Timberlake song ever. It has a beat with an unsettling electric synth sound and is paired with the hook, “all my haters gon’ say it’s fake. I guess I got my swagger back. I said, put your filthy hands all over me.” No, Justin, you don’t have your swagger back at all.

The next two songs, “Midnight Summer Jam” and “Sauce” aren’t completely awful but they aren’t anything special either. At this point I was starting to get worried that JT had lost it completely but then I found the diamond in the rough. The middle of the album contains “Man of the Woods,” “Higher Higher,” “Wave,” “Supplies,” and the best song on the album: “Morning Light featuring Alicia Keys”. All of these songs have the catchy vocals we have all become accustomed to while still offering something fresh. The last few songs on the Album, “Livin’ Off the Land,” “Breeze Off the Pond” and “Young Man” are decent and offer a good message but only appeal to Timberlake fans. This album does have a few gems but overall it isn’t anything outstanding.

Tracklist:

1. Filthy
2. Midnight Summer Jam
3. Sauce
4. Man of the Woods
5. Higher Higher
6. Wave
7. Supplies
8. Morning Light (feat. Alicia Keys)
9. Say Something (feat. Chris Stapleton)
10. Hers (interlude)
11. Flannel
12. Montana
13. Breeze Off the Pond
14. Livin’ Off the Land
15. The Hard Stuff
16. Young Man

My Rankings:

1. Morning Light (feat. Alicia Keys)
2. Wave
3. Higher Higher
4. Man of the Woods
5. Supplies
6. Midnight Summer Jam
7. Say Something (feat. Chris Stapleton)
8. Livin’ Off the Land
9. Breeze Off the Pond
10. The Hard Stuff
11. Montana
12. Young Man
13. Flannel
14. Sauce
15. Filthy