Who doesn’t love The Weeknd?? Yes…make sure you get rid of that “e” in there. Abel Tesfaye (born April 14, 1990), who is garnering attention by his stage name “The Weeknd,” is a 21 year old one-man band hailing from Toronto, Ontario. He digitally released his nine track debut album, House of Balloons, on March 21, 2011. On June 16, 2011, the album was named as one of the nominees for the 2011 Polaris Music Prize. He’s had the internet buzzing for quite some time now. When I ran across the young Canadian’s rich crooning all over those raw, dark, and eclectic productions…I didn’t know what to think. What had I just discovered? Due to the kid’s lyrical content throughout his album, one would surely know that it’s R&B. But this…this was something that could be described as something “outside the box.” His followers and the sub-underground scene have dubbed his sound as being Progressive R&B, Experimental, and Downtempo. He released three songs on the internet back in 2010 entitled “Loft Music;” “What You Need;” and “The Morning” on YouTube. He gained major attention in a very short period of time following this. When fans of Drake began to see him tweeting various lines from this young and rising artist, eyes (and ears) began to open. He is becoming known as Drake’s young R&B protégé, but let’s not take the spotlight from this guy by adding Drake to the picture.
Every song on House of Balloons commands a certain feel to the listener. The entire album sounds so convincingly raunchy in the best way possible. But be careful. What this album may command you to do could lead you into exploring parts of your partner(s) body that can’t be discussed in a kindergarten class. Close your eyes while listening and you will hear whispers of sex, lust, hurt, promiscuity, drugs, and nighttime escapades from one track to the next. Actually, it’s very much like that naughty conscience that everyone has. You know…the one that made you take that ecstasy and triple shot of patron and wake up with those two girls that one weekend. Well…maybe that was just me. But you get my point. If not, then check out what could arguably be The Weeknd’s most sensual song on the collective, entitled “What You Need.” See for yourself.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
DOWNLOAD: House of Balloons by The Weeknd
Follow The Weeknd on Twitter: @theweekndxo
Website: the-weeknd.com/
