POP
Timbaland
Shock Value II
(Interscope/Polydor)
***
As a producer, Virginia's Tim Mosley is a hitmaker so prolific that he seems to have a permanent spot reserved for his work at the top of the charts, like a chief executive's parking space.

A Timbaland track is an essential component of any big budget pop or R&B album, from Madonna's to Justin Timberlake's, and even on his third solo album he spends most of his time in the background behind more guest stars than a charity telethon.

Mosley's unremarkable rapping aside, the success of these 17 songs depends largely on your feelings about who's singing them.

Timberlake's Carry Out is a nicely minimal funk number, while Morning After Dark, featuring Nelly Furtado and SoShy, is the best tune on an album that spills over with catchiness.

However, We Belong to the Music, an unlikely dalliance with teeny pop favourite Miley Cyrus, is of use only as a ringtone.

Neither Missy Elliott or Björk, the past recipients of some of Mosley's most innovative work, are present. Instead we must endure his newish passion for mainstream rock in the album's second half, with The Fray, Daughtry and even Chad Kroeger of rock pigs Nickelback all popping up to dent his reputation as a talent spotter.

A unified sound is maintained thanks to production that is up to the minute without breaking new ground, with Mosley ignoring his hip-hop roots in favour of fizzing synthpop.
There are plenty more hits here but those wistful for the days when Timbaland lived on the cutting edge must remain nostalgic.
David Smyth

BLAKROC
Blakroc
(V2)
****
A rock band/hip-hop collision bound to spark enthusiasm in some and chill the blood of others. The Black Keys, unkindly regarded as the poor man's White Stripes by some, provide the real drum and proper guitar backbone, while rapsters lope up to the mic and tell it like it is — or wished it was. Coochie is wonderfully ribald, courtesy of Ludacris and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. Pharoahe Monch and RZA breathe fire into Dollaz & Sense, while Raekwon makes his point succinctly on Stay Off The Fuckin' Flowers. Nicole Wray sparkles soulfully on Why Can't I Forget Him and Done Did It. This may be a musical mongrel but like many mongrels, it has both charm and nous.
Pete Clark

SNOOP DOGG
Malice N Wonderland
(Priority)
****
That Snoop Dogg has reached his tenth album is remarkable in itself. That he's managed to remain artistically relevant is more remarkable still. The key is that lugubrious voice, hip hop's most seductive tones. It simply gets better with age, so much so that you'll forget he's still banging on about hos, niggas and homies. The startling news is that Malice N Wonderland is his best collection of songs this century, be it the impossibly bouncy Different Languages (“maybe we could make another baby or two” indeed); Pronto, the supertaut duet with Soulja Boy; or Pimpin' Ain't EZ, a sentiment we can all share in. A man at the peak of his powers.
John Aizlewood

Thirty Seconds To Mars
This Is War
(Virgin)
***
When a handsome Hollywood actor decides he also wants to be a rockstar, there's an understandable reluctance to do anything other than condescend — surely the lucky sod has enough already? So it is with great difficulty that I report the third album from Jared Leto and his band is not bad at all. Leto showcases his exceptional vocal range on the skyscraping melody of the title track, while the bludgeoning beats and vaulting guitars throughout evoke a beefier Fall Out Boy. If Kanye West's meagre cameo on the piano-led Hurricane suggests he was being paid by the word, he's hardly missed over 12 tracks that fizz with excitement.
Rick Pearson

JAZZ
NIGEL PRICE ORGAN TRIO
LIVE !
(Jazzizit)
****
There's a full Monty connection in the life of infantryman-turned-jazzman Nigel Price. Not Field‑Marshal Montgomery of Alamein, but Wes Montgomery of Indianapolis, America's top guitarist and Nigel's jazz hero — five of the eight themes here relate to him. Price's trio, with organ (Pete Whittaker) and drums (Matt Home), was also Wes's preferred combination. Caught in front-line action at four UK clubs, this former squaddie sounds a real killer. Hands trained to grip enemy throats shouldn't be capable of such delicate manoeuvres on guitar necks but Mr Price is full of surprises.
Jack Massarik

WORLD
Mahala Rai Banda
Ghetto Blasters
(Asphalt Tango)
****
Romania's Mahala Rai Banda play rough-edged, cheek-puffing Balkan brass, full of larger-than-life energy. They were in London to accompanythe Gypsy Queens and Kings tour. Shiny trumpet solos blare over chugging oompah grooves and vocals in Romani are delivered with a knowing wink. The tunes are catchy, the rhythms toe-tapping and dances hip-swivelling. Alongside the punchy horns, a fiddle and cimbalom bring a softer and more intimate ingredient. It's music that sounds as if it's blasting out of the mahala (Gypsy districts) of Bucharest. And even the cheesy songs, like Balada, are delivered with unashamed panache. Enjoy the party.
Simon Broughton