One of the more baffling titles in recent history is Timbaland And Magoo’s Under Construction Part 2. First off, didn’t Missy Elliott release part 1? If so, why the hell has Timbaland put out a part two to what he never released as a part one? Perhaps to make consumers assume that it is the follow up to that commercial success and Grammy nominated predecessor that Missy released. Maybe Tim Mosely figured that with part one’s added momentum, part two could achieve the same praise and possibly claim those same listeners that put part one at Grammy status. The producer that changed the way beats are perceived  has gotten behind the boards once again, accompanied by his partner in rhyme Magoo and attempts to make Timbaland a household name again with the release of Under Construction Part 2.

     Timbaland at one point was so far ahead of his time it was unbelievable, his tracks were the type to have listeners in rages and jumping out of windows. Well kiddies, it seems as if time has finally caught up with Timbaland. Under Construction Part 2 is so un-Timbaland-esque it’s apparent that he is no longer head and shoulders above his competition, he is damn near eye level. Being that any time Tim commits himself to a whole album from a production standpoint that it’s a guaranteed must listen, it’s frightening to know that Tim’s beats and the word average can be spoken in the same breath. It’s already bad enough that the listener has to be subjected to the horrendous styles of both emcees, but “average” production? That’s blasphemous, that’s sacrilegious, that’s profane, that’s exactly what we have with Under Construction Part 2.

    While Tim has been in a production funk as of late (no “Big Pimpin’s” or “Are You That Somebody’s” in sight), it would be assumed that he would break out of that run when he is completely committed to a project. Unfortunately the average beats continue throughout the whole album. Not to say there are tracks worth enduring. “Cop That Shit” for one is dope for the simple fact that Tim, Magoo, and Missy pay homage to the likes of Rakim, Special Ed, and MC Lyte respectively. With Missy’s Lyte reference taking the cake “When you say you love me, it doesn’t matter/It goes into my head as just chit-chatter/You may think I’m egotistical or just very free/But, what cha say I go tell it to, TIMOTHY!” The sick flute and voice driven “Indian Flute (ft. Raja Shwari)” makes those verses by Tim, Magoo, and lil bro Sebastian fade into obscurity as Raje Shwari’s vocals take the pain away. “N 2 Da Music” featuring an old’ school Brandy and “Insane” featuring Candice “Gg” Nelson are also cool as a fan even though on the latter Candice Nelson can be interchanged with any vocalist and the beat will still melt many eardrums.

    But the buck stops there, and stops there harshly. Aside from the previously mentioned, nothing in Tim’s reserve will make a single jaw drop. It’s already bad enough that the listener has to suffer through the tongue lashing that the featured artists provide, but when the well runs dry it makes each listen all the more painful. Tracks like “Leavin” and  “I Got Luv 4 Ya” produced by Heavy D are so average that it forces the listener to pay that much more attention to the lyrics, and paying that much more attention has been know to kill a buzz or two. “Throwback” just doesn’t have the impact as anything Tim has done, nor does the J. Nitty produced “Don’t Make Me Take It There” which is downright dreary. And just being subjected to Magoo’s lame vocals is reason enough to give that skip track finger a workout.

    At the end of the day Under Construction Part 2 is a huge disappointment. On the usual Tim produced album there are at least one or two tracks that are of the “Oh My God!!!” variety. Sadly here there are a grand total of zero of those aforementioned moments. It could be possible that Timbaland has finally run his course, but that may be hardly believable knowing all the awe inspired moments that he has delivered over that past half decade. Just chalk this up as a serious misstep and hope he never revisits this moment again.