Without Fergie’s hit-making clout backing his beats, will.i.am teeters dangerously close to being will.i.was.

His solo albums range from silly to downright unlistenable, and too often the rapper who bragged about his futuristic beats felt outdated by his peers. But on “#willpower,” will.i.am’s fourth go-round on the solo album circuit, he found his new muse.

You’re now rocking with will.i.am and Britney, b*tch.

Lead single “Scream & Shout,” a reckless track with a British accent-feigning Spears sing-talking over a pogoing bass beat, encapsulates the decadent spectacle that is “#willpower.”

Think too much about will.i.am’s robotic vocals or Spears’ refusal to actually sing, and it comes off as a self-absorbed vanity project. But unplug your brain for half an hour and this album starts looking really good on the dance floor.

With 15 tracks clocking in at one hour and abounding with throwaway tracks — “Gettin’ Dumb” is a cacophony of drum machines and tinny synthesizers, and “Geekin’” features a laughable “Get my geek on” chorus — “#willpower” is will.i.am at his most ridiculously self-indulgent, basking in his Auto-Tune-drenched beats.

Even though he checks in with a case of advanced narcissism, there are still some club jams that exist for the love of late nights, neon lights and plenty of booze.

“This Is Love” rivals Swedish House Mafia at its danciest, and will.i.am and duet partner Eva Simons sound unabashedly enthusiastic belting over a beat running rampant with earworm hooks. “Hello” flourishes with will.i.am’s knack for writing catchy-as-hell choruses, so even when his flow in the verses stumbles, his chants of “everyone have fun tonight” channel Wang Chung at their one-hit-wonderest.

Spears wasn’t the only singer who jumped on will.i.am’s ego-stroking bandwagon, either. Justin Bieber gives a soulful, arresting performance on “#thatPOWER,” flexing some surprisingly strong pipes on the track’s chorus.

Washed-up Disney starlet Miley Cyrus shows up on “Fall Down,” an almost-shameful clone of Flo Rida’s “Whistle.” The acoustic, glossy summer-jam sheen that will.i.am slathers on the tune decomposes into his usual wheelhouse of thumping bass and regal synths, but Cyrus sounds remarkably mature, her voice dropping its whiny, nasally edge.

Ex-Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger proves she’s still got it on “Far Away From Home,” and hook-singer extraordinaire Skylar Grey gives a solid — if uninspired — performance on “Love Bullets.”

But why will.i.am didn’t balk at putting embattled hip-hop thug Chris Brown on his guest list is baffling. “Let’s Go” is one of “#willpower’s” weakest, and Brown’s yelping voice is no Fergie.

“#willpower” will — and already has, thanks to “Scream & Shout’s” inescapable radio airplay — conquer the Top 40 charts, a claim none of his older solo works can live up to. Will.i.am can toss a dart at the record’s tracklist to pick his next single: Anything from mid-tempo toe-tapper “The World Is Crazy” to the barnstorming gangster rap of “Freshy” would soar on the Billboard charts.

But will.i.am’s beats still resolutely sound like Black Eyed Peas beats, and “#willpower” keeps the hit maker planted firmly in his comfort zone. Imagine Fergie instead of Scherzinger or Cyrus, and nothing about the record changes. As will.i.am struts and preens his club-ready bangers over the album’s 15 songs, it still feels like songwriting practice for the Peas’ next studio session.

It’s nearly impossible to listen to will.i.am as a solo artist without giving a passing thought to his work with the Black Eyed Peas, and while “#willpower” packs a powerful dose of summer jams and remix-worthy tracks that DJs will salivate over, it lacks the pomp and circumstance that his Peas songs boast.

But will you worry about that after a few shots when you start showing off your best moves at the nightclub this summer? Hell no.

Published on April 30, 2013 at 12:47 am

Contact Erik: ervanrhe@syr.edu | @therealvandyman