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Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo practically sweat platinum. As the production duo behind the Neptunes, they have crafted monster hits for everyone from
Justin Timberlake and
Britney Spears to
Jay-Z and
Ol' Dirty Bastard. In their spare time they make the music they
really like under the banner N.E.R.D. Equally inspired by
Duran Duran's silk-spun new wave classics and the
Beatles' strapping psychedelic epics,
Fly or Die, the follow-up to 2002's
In Search Of, is a bustling, bumping disc highlighted by rowdy tracks like "She Wants to Move" and "Jump," a collaboration with members of
Good Charlotte. The nu-metal crunch of the last album gives way to a more suitable '70s vibe, making the band sound like an unholy cross between
Sly & The Family Stone and
E.L.O.--as filtered through
A Tribe Called Quest. That's a good thing. --
Aidin Vaziri