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The Weeknd turned R&B on its head without showing his face.
The sound got cleaner.
He put together an accomplished live show.
He honed his dance moves.
He tinkered with the formula.
He fashioned himself into a pop star.
The halftime show the whole night, really felt piped in from a timeline where nothing ever went wrong.
To be fair, the Weeknd isnt American, nor has he mixedpoliticswith his music.
The Hills crushed, and the choir arrangement made it sound even eviler than on the record.
Earned It remains a slog.
Teasing Siouxsie and the BansheesHappy Housewithout playing Glass Table Girls, theHouse of Balloonsclassic that sampled it, stung.
But theres something dark and weird and ironic about the Weeknd inhisAfter Hourserathats being left off the table here.
From the bandaged faces to the gaudy lounge lizard couture, the aesthetics gesture at ideas that go unexplored.
(Well, maybe you started to wonder what a fully realizedAfter Hourstour mightve accomplished.)
Maybe some people forgot about the heaviness of everything for a couple of hours last night.
But at what cost?
