Dawn FM - The Weeknd (2022)

He seems to delve back into 80s synth pop pretty heavily, but he does manage to create something new with it. The concept is, i guess, a radio station while you’re awaiting the afterlife, which… i mean, ok. I’m not gonna listen to Zeppelin’s Battle Of Evermore yesterday and then criticize this for being pretentious or high concept. I have ended up picking out the more single-sounding tracks as the ones I like more, but I’d understand if people like the spoken parts or interludes as well.

A lot of “throwback-y” records that try to evoke the 80s fixate on gated drums and bright synths, trying to sound like Genesis or something. Weeknd takes a different approach.

The rhythm is mostly driven by the synths and some sparse programmed drums here. This is is a very 80s approach that makes you think of anyone from Eurhythmics to Depeche Mode. But those beats are interplaying with (probably also programmed) hi-hats, which winds up sounding like more modern trap beats, much more playful rhythmically. Not complex, but ingenious. There isn’t any Cameo-style slap bass on here, I don’t think, but it wouldn’t be out of place, and neither are guest verses from Tyler and Lil Wayne, despite featuring on tracks that sound like they could have been recorded in 1988. It’s a pretty great synthesis of old and new.

Tracks I liked

Gasoline - weird fake accent, but it does help the impression that you’re listening to a Spandau Ballet outtake

Sacrifice - the closest thing you’ll find here to a funk workout. Nice change of pace and a stellar track.

Here go again - a Tyler verse that I might not have realized was Tyler if not for the credit on the track.

Less Than Zero - probably the purest synthpop on the record, which isn’t my usual jam, but I like it.