Has Timabaland still got the Midas touch? Tim Moseley, the golden boy of Hip hop production had a 2007 offering that was an eclectic mix of truly experimental stuff, producing hits that are still heard in the clubs today. So it’s impossible to talk about Timabaland’s Shock Value II without comparing it to its predecessor. Can it match it? Or dare we ask, better it?

They say if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, and to that end, most of Timbaland’s old guest artists have returned. Justin Timberlake features on the takeaway-inspired ‘Carry Out’, the first full track on the album, and Moseley’s self-confessed favourite. With lyrics typical of Timber-Timbo collaborations - think outrageously arrogant, sexually-explicit flirting (‘Is it full of myself to want you full of me?’ sings the ever-coy Timberlake) – this funky, beat-y dance track may require a few listens, but is extremely popular amongst hip hop dancers and choreographers, who no doubt overlook the poor rhymes (‘errors’/ ‘areas’…really?) in favour of the highly addictive syncopated beats.

Noticeably absent is Missy Elliot, Moseley’s former muse. Sorely missed, in this reviewer eyes – well, ears; her lyrics would add some comic attitude to this otherwise quite lyrically-average album. In her place, amongst the likes of The Fray and Esthero (a relative unknown with a voice not too dissimilar to Nicole Scherzinger), are a bunch of tween pop starlets. While Jojo’s offering is just ok, and Miley Cyrus’ frankly laughable (she’s got ‘a brand new two-step’…and we’re ‘gonna love [her] outfit’, apparently), it’s the track featuring Katy Perry that’s a real gem. Inspired by BEP’s ‘I Got A Feeling’, the stomping ‘If We Ever Meet Again’ starts soft and builds, and  after a few listens, will - surprisingly for a Timabaland track - have you warbling along, complete with a warm, fuzzy feeling inside. I kid you not. Oh, and listen out for the sirens in the chorus.

Pop-rock band OneRepublic also makes a highly anticipated return. Their offering, ‘Marching On’, belongs more on their own album and feels almost out of place here – it’s harmony-heavy and uplifting, almost U2-esque, with little trace of Timabaland for a good minute and a half. The same can be said of, amongst others, The Fray’s ‘Undertow’. On tracks scattered in between, however, Moseley bravely premieres his own vocals, which, while refreshingly untrained and imperfect, don’t quite provide the impact they ought to – ‘Ease Off the Liquor’ being the only exception.

On its own, Shock Value II is a great album. But the direct comparisons are inevitable, and unfortunately, ‘Marching On’ isn’t as good as the first album’s ‘Apologize’, and ‘Carry Out’ is no ‘Bounce’. The experimentation on this offering just doesn’t quite match up to the infectious concoctions of its predecessor. With Shock Value II, Timabaland shows that sometimes, your biggest rival is yourself.