“Signs”

There might not be a more fitting way to first experience a new Drake song than watching a Louis Vuitton fashion show live stream. His recent “choons” are sleek and indifferent enough for the catwalk with more emphasis on aesthetic value than depth. “Signs,” which premiered during the show, is the latest stop on his world music tour. The song is soothing in sound, but grating in its passive-aggression.

Meeting somewhere between “One Dance” and “Passionfruit,” “Signs” settles into a space that might be considered ambient afrobeats, ringing true enough to recall frequent collaborator WizKid, but subdued enough to hit the John Mayer cover sweet spot. Afrobeats happen in technicolor, yet Drake seems to wash its vibrancy down to much softer tones. His take is more relaxing, but sustains that inescapable African swing. On “Signs,” as on “Passionfruit,” these calming sonic mood-inducers are used craftily as a sun-soaked setting for calling a woman’s trustworthiness into question. This smoothness in sound, anchored by his nonchalant voice and delivery, lulls you into a trance. But a close listen betrays the atmosphere he’s creating. It’s hard for a song so aesthetically pleasing to be this annoying beneath the surface.

“Champagne with breakfast while I’m yawning/You can’t drink all day if you don’t start in the morning,” Drake sings, in all seriousness (a duller retread of a Weeknd lyric). This is all remarkably on brand. This is Drake going through the motions, too big to fail, in the midst of a global takeover. After another night on an island paradise, Drake asks another woman to wait on him, but this is already an old trick by now. You know what comes next. He won’t commit to anything that doesn’t fully serve his ego. Trust issues resurface when he accuses his overnight guest of being a temptress: “You’re playin’ it right, you’re playin’ me perfect,” he sings, nearly in a whisper. “I gotta catch myself/I can’t play myself.” But he kind of already has.