No matter how hard you try, there is no escaping The Neptunes (Chad Hugo & Pharrell Williams)! Turn your FM dial to any urban station long enough, and you will hear them. Cop the latest commercial blockbuster release, and you’re sure to find a Neptune’s production credit looming somewhere on the insert. And lets face it, when you are being sought after by the likes of Jay-Z, Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, and N ‘Sync (ca-ching), your shit is large!

Yet, for all of the Neptunes crossover/commercial success, they have undeniably become the underground fans favorite whipping boys—which is also known as the universal sign for making it. With this in mind, perhaps, the Neptunes should have taken a cue from Alt-Rockers Sugar Ray and named the title of their debut 14:59, in reference to their supposed 15-minutes of fame. Why? Because ever since the Neptunes invaded hip-hop, critics and fans alike hunkered down (much like we did with Swizz Beatz) and waited for their electronic fad to pass. Yet, the 15-minutes of fame the Neptune’s were originally allotted has come and went! And guess what? The Neptunes are still here, and judging by, In Search Of, don’t bet on there stock going anywhere but up!

While Chad, Pharrell and guest vocalist MC Shay were unsatisfied with the earlier version of their debut album, In Search Of, (which was shelved in the States, but released overseas). The trio quickly regrouped and scurried back to the lab. And the results of that pow-wow are a jaw-dropping reincarnation that is unlike anything previously heard from the ubiquitous Virginia duo you love to hate.

While the Neptunes stick to the playbook on “Lapdance” and the orally fixated “Brain”; (which is best illustrated on the import version). They predominantly eschew the hackneyed synthesizer slabs that propelled their precipitous ascent up the hip-hop production ranks. Yet, this deviation reveals an unforeseen musical sophistication, as the Neptunes healthily cleanse themselves of all familiar “Superthug”” excesses, and reinvent themselves by delving into the realm of live instrumentation with the U.S. version of the release.

Though the import version offers a discernible departure from the Neptunes sonic script, the sublime domestic release unfolds like a basement tape, which was recorded merely for the groups’ recreational pleasures. Melodic strings and acoustic guitars drive the high and dry narrative “Bobby James”, and warm harmonies augment “Run To The Sun”, where Pharrell achingly yearns to turn back the hands of time “I wish we could run to the sun, and never come back.” Yet, the Neptunes musical facelift is most evident on the aggressive anti-poser ode “Rock Star” and “Provider”, a vulnerable drug game ballad that brims with Bluesy influences.

While In Search Of drifts to far into R&B and Rock to truly be considered a “hip-hop” LP; after all, Pharrell and Shay are crooning over there own beats, not Jay-Z and Busta Rhymes. However, that seems to be the Neptunes main ambition here, as their debut is one of those rare LP’s that cohesively implements a variety of styles, so many in fact, that it precludes In Search Of from being pigeonholed into one “true” specific musical genre. However, too get the full-effect; you really need to cop both versions, if for no other reason then to compare/contrast just how much maturity and diversity is exhibited here.