The Weeknd

The Weeknd is the solo project of Abel Tesfaye. Under this name, he has released a number of mixtapes and studio albums. After Hours is the fourth studio album. There are production and songwriting credits to Max Martin, Elton John, Kevin Parker, and Oneohtrix Point Never among others. Abel himself was also involved with writing and producing this album. This project is a complete reinvention of Abel and his music, which becomes increasingly apparent as the album goes on. This transformation only makes sense given his constant growth over the 2010s.

Casino and Synthpop

It is impossible to talk about this album without first bringing up its influences. This album is very obviously inspired by 80s synthpop in its sound, and a number of films serve as inspiration for the style and scope of this project, most notably, films from Martin Scorsese as well as Terry Gilliam. The Las Vegas strip also serves as an important subject in the narrative of this project. The large number of influences does not mean this is an unoriginal project, far from it. The Weeknd takes these ideas and influences and applies them to his own style and narrative. The Synthpop sound is only there in addition to Abel’s forward thinking R&B style, and the films he references serve as recontextualized backdrops for his own personal narrative. The story Abel tells throughout this project is compelling and personal. He speaks about a number of topics that mainly revolve around his actions, concerning drugs and alcohol, and how they have affected him and his relationships. This narrative works well with the production style, the sonic presentation never clashes with the lyrical substance. The narrative is also aided by an improved songwriting style from Abel.

The tracklist is very strong in this album, and the ideas flow through it somewhat consistently. The album opens Alone Again, a dark representation of the different tone this album will have. The songs builds and ends pretty grand, leaving the impression that this will be a different type of Weeknd project. This dark feel carries over into Too Late, except here we hear a lot more of the synth heavy production style he’d be going for here. The lyrical content of this song also shows the self realization of his shortcomings. This song would be his first attempt in trying to fix his mistakes. From a lyrical standpoint, the transition into Hardest to Love makes perfect sense, since this has him continuing to plead with his significant other that he knows he has been difficult and that he’ll be different now. Unfortunately, this logically progression in the narrative is not represented in the instrumentals, dramatically shifting into something akin to something Ben Gibbard would write for The Postal Service. Lost momentum is made up in the next track, Scared to Live. This song carries the same production style as the last track as well as a continuation in the narrative of Abel’s relationship. Scared to Live also ends on a somewhat somber note, which is matched in the beginning of Snowchild. This track explores Abel’s past as he reflects on how quickly he was thrown into a life of fame, and the negative effects it had on him as his began to use drugs and attending parties. Escape From LA is an interesting progression of these themes as we see Abel realize that he has to escape this way of life, that being the drugs, alcohol, and partying. This fast pace living takes a physical form as LA. The production on this track is also very spacey and has some interesting rhythmic patterns that adds life to the track. The narrative further progresses on Heartless, the leading single for this album. This song is a jarring transition in tone both lyrically and instrumentally. However, unlike the transition to Hardest to Love, this drastic shift makes sense given the subject of the song. Heartless has Abel returning to his old ways, abusing drugs, getting drunk, and gambling. He is quick to return to these things because he is “heartless” and doesn’t care about the effects it will have on himself or his loved ones.

Faith has an alternative look on this subject. We see Abel understanding that he should change his ways, but he doesn’t have faith in himself to be able to do it. The instrumentals are very synthy and the progression is amazing and matches the feelings being conveyed in the lyrics. The song has a very grand outro that I feel really highlights just how amazing the production on this album is. This song goes into another one of the albums highlights with Blinding Lights, perhaps the most obvious example of the influence synthpop has on this album sonically. The production is very vibrant and bright. The progression is very catchy, the beat is dancy. Overall this is just a very fun and well made song. That doesn’t mean that this song doesn’t continue with the topics of this album. This song shows him going on a long night of partying in the Las Vegas strip, since he feels abandoned and lost after a breakup. It proves how easy it is for him to slip back into doing the things that got him into trouble in the first place. In Your Eyes is another synth heavy track with a strong hook, bouncy bassline, and a sax solo. Despite how well made this track is I can’t help but feel the song topic is a bit uninspired. With then go to Save Your Tears, another 80s inspired cut but with a more chilled out and relaxed progression and hook. This one continues the pattern seen in the last track, fantastic production with uninspired lyrical themes. This track doesn’t do a whole lot to prove that this is a more matured effort for Abel, and it’s a track that I feel to be pretty weak in substance compared to other cuts on this record. We then get the Repeat After Me interlude, a track that I feel to be somewhat pointless other than to show the great production skills of Oneohtrix Point Never and Kevin Parker.

Next up is the title track After Hours, which is also the longest song on here coming in at six minutes in length. This track sees Abel in distress over a breakup. While the general concept of this track can seem a bit basic, he proves that he can do something interesting with it. The instrumentals are very strong, production is tight, and sonically, this track does a lot to convey the feelings he has. The closer on this album, Until I Bleed Out, is a satisfying conclusion to the ideas on this album, although I wish it did a bit more in terms of instrumentals. Abel is unable to push further to fix the problems in his life, and he is practically begging for someone to help him find strength, help that doesn’t come by the end of the album. It is a very dark track which is a proper conclusion to a darker, more serious release from The Weeknd.

Favorite Tracks

1. Faith

2. Blinding Lights

3. Escape From LA

Overall Thoughts

The Weeknd delivers his best project to date featuring stellar production and performances. Although the songwriting can be a bit bland in spots, Abel proves that he can create a more mature narrative in his music. The fantastic decision of a stylized 80s approach to this album adds vibrance and life to the dark topics of this record, and it keeps the momentum flowing throughout its runtime.

Final Score

8/10 – Amazing