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The Weeknd’s “After Hours” is the best album of 2020 so far (opinion)


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Sorry Dua Lipa and Gaga, I love your albums too, but The Weeknd truly outdid himself this time around. 

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After Hours takes The Weeknd’s unique dark, intense, hedonic nighttime R&B and elevates it with retro 80s influences, creating an innovative mix of new and old. The album is cohesive, but contains a song for every mood.

There’s Alone Again for when you’re feeling, well, alone. You have Too Late for when you’re just chilling out. Hardest to Love for when you’re feeling melancholic and reflective. Scared to Love when you’re feeling a connection with that special someone. Heartless for when you’re feeling like a bad *****. Blinding Lights, In Your Eyes, and Save Your Tears when you’re getting lit and living carefree with your friends. Repeat After Me (Interlude) when you’re feeling a bit possessive and jealous. And finally, there’s After Hours and Until I Bleed Out when you’re going through some serious emotional trauma. 

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I don’t think any other album has come close for me in terms of having such an incredible ending as this album does. The very large majority of albums I’ve listened to either slow down towards the end of the album and fade out, or end on a triumphant, encore type note. Well, not this album. After Hours has a unique structure in that it seems to actually start out as a slow burn, which I think is pretty rare in pop music. However, just as things continue to get faster-paced and lighter with Blinding Lights, In Your Eyes, and Save Your Tears, the album completely takes a dark turn with Repeat After Me (Interlude), turns into a hypnotic spiral in After Hours, and then climaxes with destruction and trauma in Until I Bleed Out. No other album has had such an impactful ending to me.

For these reasons, I easily consider After Hours to be the best album of 2020 so far. Thoughts? Have you listened to the album? Do you enjoy it? Or do you have another favorite album so far this year?

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8 hours ago, CrazyButItFeelsAllright said:

2020 is halfway done and Future Slayalgia already won the battle a third of the year in :mattafact: The Weeknd was tolerable before he hit it bigHigh For This, The Morning & Wicked Games>Young Turks by Rod Steward :mattafact:

Have you heard After Hours? Everyone seems to agree that Starboy was something different for him, but After Hours seems like a return to form to me.

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I loved the album initially. Now that it's been a few months, though, I catch myself listening to just a few songs from After Hours. From Dua's album I like all songs besides the last two, and as for Chromatica, again, just a few.

In my humble opinion, I can't give album of the year to any of the above-mentioned artists, but them three altogether certainly form a characteristic mood/vibe for the first half of 2020. Thus far, they are my musical trio this year. 

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10 minutes ago, OnlyFacts said:

I respectfully disagree. I personally think Dua Lipas “future nostalgia” is the best album of 2020. It’s a masterpiece from beginning to end with a cohesive sound and direction. The Weeknd’s album is good, but it’s not his best work (in my opinion)Tonight Show Laughing GIF by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

I love FN to the point where almost every song could be a single... up until the last 2 songs. The last 2 songs ruin the experience for me. The album is already short at 37 minutes and 11 songs, but if I skip the last 2 songs, the album becomes only about 30 minutes and 9 songs in length.

Those 9 songs are fantastic, but After Hours gives me 54 minutes of content that I skip nothing of and that is arguably more diverse too. Now, don't get me wrong, I still really love FN, and I think FN and After Hours are amazing paired together as a kind off day/night summer combo, but these are the reasons I don't consider FN the best album of the year so far. 

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57 minutes ago, Urbanney said:

I love FN to the point where almost every song could be a single... up until the last 2 songs. The last 2 songs ruin the experience for me. The album is already short at 37 minutes and 11 songs, but if I skip the last 2 songs, the album becomes only about 30 minutes and 9 songs in length.

Those 9 songs are fantastic, but After Hours gives me 54 minutes of content that I skip nothing of and that is arguably more diverse too. Now, don't get me wrong, I still really love FN, and I think FN and After Hours are amazing paired together as a kind off day/night summer combo, but these are the reasons I don't consider FN the best album of the year so far. 

I can respect that. 🙂

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