CD Review: Starboy by The Weekend

As soon as I heard the singles off this album, I was hyped. Sure, the Weeknd had adopted a new, pop-friendly sound, but new Weeknd is still good Weeknd. Or so I thought. Outside of the singles, the majority of the album sounds pretty generic and plain. Lyrics have never been a strong point for Abel, and it shows on this project. There are no memorable lines on anything, making the entire project that much worse. “Sidewalks” and “Party Monster” are the highlights of the album, while other tracks like “Rockin” sound like something they would play too loud inside of an Abercrombie & Fitch. Overall, The Weeknd tried too hard to change his sound on this album to match the mainstream rather than his hardcore fans. This album is really forgettable and probably won’t stay in my rotation for much longer.

— Bigoa Machar

Starboy
The Weeknd
Xo/Republic
Score: C+