Bloodied and alone after a Jimmy Kimmel performance , Abel wanders aimlessly throughout the empty streets and subways of Los Angeles. His face getting more and more distraught, to the point of tears. After putting on his sunglasses (a recurring metaphor for getting high), he turns super dark and ends up attempting to murder a couple in an elevator. It’s not exactly your typical video for an album that has the highest first week sales of 2020, but it works for Abel.













Abel has been making music under the name The Weeknd for almost a decade, starting with his trilogy of mixtapes. Originally released separately in 2011, and officially again together in 2012, they are still widely considered as his masterpiece, especially the first mixtape, House of Balloons . Three albums, an EP, four number one hits (now five), and after becoming one of the biggest pop stars in the world; his latest album was released last month.





After Hours blends together everything that has made The Weeknd popular up until this point. There is dark and druggy subject matter that the older fans like, such as the title track and Escape from LA. There are some shiny 80s synth-pop anthems that helped elevate his status to pop star, such as Blinding Lights and In Your Eyes . He also brought back some fan favorite producers such as Illangelo and pop legend Max Martin , as well as some other big producers like the hip hop behemoth Metro Boomin and vaporwave innovator Oneohtrix Point Never .









The album goes from style for style with ease. From the heavy synth that starts the album off, to the UK garage inspired sonics of Too Late , to the 80s style ballad of Scared To Live (which does hit differently during a pandemic). He even drops a couple half-rap verses on the brutally blunt Snowchild . The styles come so easily to him, to the point where this album is evidence that he’s one of the most dynamic pop stars out now! And all these styles come together to make Abel’s best studio album yet.





But this album is not without its flaws. The last couple minutes of Escape From LA where Abel talks very slowly about having sex in the studio doesn’t feel necessary. Same goes for songs like Too Late and Repeat After Me (Interlude) . While none of these moments are inherently bad, it makes the album feel a bit too long.





While the album release and storytelling music videos do make this his most concise and world building album release yet, the album itself is not yet the masterpiece album he has in him. If Abel continues at this pace, it won’t be long before we finally get the timeless masterpiece album that he has in him.





Must Listen Tracks: Blinding Lights, In Your Eyes, Hardest to Love, After Hours

Score: 8.5/10







