After numerous revisits, this Weeknd album just isn’t sitting well with me. Though I’m all for any efforts the artists of today make to change the R&B landscape, the lyricism on this LP sticks up like an unwelcome weed.

Imagine this album as an indie film, and you’ve been given a free ticket. Considering the fact you paid no money, the picture quality, sets, costumes, and camerawork are all quite good. Loos pretty hi-production! Maybe it’ll be promising.

But then the lead actor walks into frame, and it becomes painfully clear things are going downhill. His mannerisms are awkward, his phrasing is generic, and he wasn’t given the best of lines.

He’s kind of like a younger, more risk-taking version of Johnny in Tommy Wiseau’s the Room. He’s nobody to sympathize with. His emotions are legitimate–even if they are a little overly dramatic–but he lacks the ability to express himself in a remotely captivating way; making all of the hardships on this album seem way too singular to be sympathized with.

I usually do my best to avoid people like this, not listen to them sing about their self-created “problems.”

WATCH THE REVIEW