Everybody hates it, don’t they? Never have I read so many bad reviews about an album as I listen to it with highly appreciative ears. I’ll admit, when I heard that grunge legend Chris Cornell was teaming up with hip hop producer extraordinaire Timbaland I was surprised. But surprised in a good way, for here was a teaming of two talents that had soundtracked much of my life between them. I am very eclectic though. In one corner we have Timbaland. The increasingly omnipresent (if you can be such a thing) and seemingly omnipotent producer has gone from being a highly respected hip hop and R&B beatmaker for the likes of Jay-Z, Missy Elliott, Aaliyah, and Ginuwine to the world’s most prolific hitmaker, providing his polish to pop stars such as Justin Timberlake, Nelly Furtado, and Madonna.
In the other corner we have Chris Cornell. The distinctive singer made his name with his trademark howl in the band Soundgarden, part of a triumvirate of bands alongside Pearl Jam and Nirvana who spearheaded the grunge movement in the early 90s. He went on to form the equally successful Audioslave with former members of Rage Against The Machine, doubly securing his place in rock history.
It’s this rock legacy that makes this new project so jarring for Cornell’s fans. The shimmering electronica and stylised beats that make up Timbaland’s armoury are the polar opposite of the raw and gritty rock music that Cornell is known and loved for. But can you blame him for wanting to try something new? There was a sense that Soundgarden had done all they could when they came to an end, and the last Audioslave album certainly suggested a band that was also running out of ideas. Then there are Cornell’s two previous solo offerings – both uninspiring albums that failed to make anything like the impact of his band work. Cornell’s career seems to have been made up of projects that push the boundaries then move on. His decision two years ago to record the James Bond theme also drew gasps, but he made it okay for alternative artists to do such a thing. No one raised an eyebrow when Jack White recorded last year’s Bond theme with Alicia Keys.As Scream has been released, reviewed and panned by critics and fans alike, it’s Chris Cornell who has taken all the flak. Timbaland seems to have come out of it relatively unscathed. Yet it’s his contribution to the project that is the most disappointing. Taken on its own Scream is a competent and highly enjoyable pop album that blends R&B and rock to great effect. All these songs would sound great on the radio and it’s a mystery why the songs haven’t been marketed there. But we know Timbaland can do big-sounding pop songs that sound great on the radio. From him it’s really nothing new. The presence of Chris Cornell should finally have elicited Timbaland’s rock album. There certainly seems to be one trying to get out. His music constantly references Coldplay, and his collaborations with The Hives and Fall Out Boy on his Shock Value album provided two of its highlights. But, despite working with one of rock’s most interesting and versatile singers, all Timbaland has done is foist the next Timberlake album on him.
As previously said though, if you put both men’s legacies aside, this is an extremely well-made pop record. Timbaland knows what he’s doing. The scuttling beats and Indian mysticism that lace a number of the tracks are his trademark tricks but they don’t sound forced. Each song feels like it was created lovingly by both men. While Cornell has obviously had help with the melodies (judging from his last two solo albums), his influence is still felt. The chorus of opener Part Of Me has a barroom brawl feel to it, as does the rockiest track Enemy, while Other Side Of Town oozes small-town sleaze. When those guitars do appear though, they are disappointingly polite – choreographed aggression that’s unable to slip out from under Timbaland’s thumb. All the tracks flow into one another, which only works well at times, but does add to the sense that this is a labour of love. Sweet Revenge and Get Up is the album at its most R&B before it segues into highlight Ground Zero, a danceable barber shop soul creation. But the album is dominated by sweeping stadium-sized choruses, no doubt boosted by the presence of OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder on songwriting duties on some tracks. Just as things are getting rockier we are reminded once more of Timbaland’s presence by the final track Watch Out, which struts down the same path as Nelly Furtado’s Maneater.
So this is has been a huge experiment for Cornell – his unmistakable voice does some things you never thought you’d hear it do and wanders dangerously close to generic pop vocal at times. For Timbaland it’s certainly him at his best but hardly at his most experimental. Where he’ll go from here is obvious – pumping out more pop hits. For Cornell that’s the big question – what on earth will he do next?
