In interviews, the Neptunes’ Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo bristle when they’re called hip-hop producers. Admittedly, their scope extends well beyond the bounds of rap, but their less-fashionable side project N.E.R.D reveals that as a futuristic rock ‘n’ soul band, they are pretty uneven. The group’s second album is less funky and syncopated than its predecessor, sounding more ’60s psychedelic than anything on the radio these days. Williams still thinks he can sing (he really can’t), and the choice of Lenny Kravitz as guest contributor on “Maybe” is a serious infraction of the code of cool, but when it works–as it does on “She Wants to Move” and “Drill Sergeant”–the disc can be deliciously weird.
Take away: Second stage
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Edited by Cara DiPasquale (cdipasquale@tribune.com) and Kris Karnopp (kkarnopp@tribune.com)
