As far as Dead Meadow vs Justin Timberlake goes, one act put together a phenomenal stoner-rock record for 200$ in a garage, whereas the other put together a pretty good (or so I've heard) pop/dance album (which admittedly I have not listened to in its entirety) with a whole lot of studio help and a previous career in a boy band. One act pens lyrics involving Lovecraftian creatures, and the other act sings about bringing sexy back.
When I listen to the opening strains of Sleepy Silver Door, I am visualizing the trees and mountains uprooting themselves to fight against the Old Ones; when I listen to Sexyback, I visualize some kids found those giant pianos you walk on and started stomping on a few keys at random and repeated that for a while because they thought it sounded cool. For me to really like a record it has to paint a scene in my mind that captivates me and make me want to stare at it awhile. It doesn't have to follow a theme, it just has to be pleasing to my inner eye or whatever you want to call it, and Futuresex/Lovesounds doesn't do that for me.
That's the best justification I can offer as to why I would pick Dead Meadow over Futuresex/Lovesounds. I don't think it's a bad album, it's just not one I like, whether it is superior to the other or not.
Your reasons for preferring the sound of one over the sound of the other are totally fair and that is one of those 'to each their own' deals.
But to hold against Futuresex/Lovesounds that it was recorded in a studio, that JT worked together with Timbaland to put it together and that he used to be in N Sync? I don't think that is fair.
Lo-fi, cheaply done 4-tracked albums and hi-fi, immaculate studio albums can both suck, or they can both be great, it just depends on the songcraft (Look at John Darnielle, he's done both styles and all of his albums kick ass). I've got no qualms with someone liking Dead Meadows over JT, people have their tastes, but I think to hold the manner of its production against it is unwise.
Either way, it was an arbitrary comparison that doesn't really work when trying to critically analyze the two, as it is pretty much apples to oranges.