After Hours

2020

After Hours is the Weeknd locked in with a formula that’s as comfort-inducing as his TGIF-friendly nom de plume. But there’s nothing run of the mill about his fourth album. From the bloody grin on its cover to the Super Bowl-halftime-dominating snarl of the mammoth “Blinding Lights,” this nocturnal opus is all about thrills. “In Your Eyes” puts the pandemic behind a velvet rope. But there’s also quiet moments like “Escape From LA” — an epic cuff-in-season staple for the apocalypse. Here, the Weeknd proved that being a bold name was not going to slow down his momentum.