The Weeknd strikes again with ‘DAWN FM’

Mathew Bejarano, Reporter

The Weeknd’s recent string of success continues with his latest album, “DAWN FM,” as he proves once again that he’s a generational talent.

The 31-year-old Toronto native is coming off a big year where he performed at last year’s Super Bowl halftime show as well as having his previous album, ”After Hours,” go double platinum and his hit single “Blinding Lights” sitting at over 2.75 billion streams on Spotify. 

The Weeknd—whose real name is Abel Makkonen Tesfaye—has mastered the ability to make modern pop music sound something straight out of the 80s reminiscent of that of Michael Jackson.

The first five tracks of his latest album immediately draw listeners in with head bopping beats and production, especially the drums. The fifth song on the album, “Sacrifice,” is currently the most streamed song on Spotify sitting at over 56 million streams.

The best songs on the album come from the second track, “Gasoline,” and the fourth track, “Take My Breath.” The synths throughout “Gasoline” really draws in listeners and the keys on “Take My Breath” make it seem as though you’re driving down the highway at night.

In the first verse of “Gasoline,” The Weeknd pitches his voice down, singing in an almost 80’s British pop sound similar to A-Ha frontman Morten Harket. Although listeners may be caught off guard by his voice, it has a cool effect on the song when he switches back and forth between that and his normal voice making the song sound almost like a duet. 

Something that stays consistent throughout the album is it’s production. Not only does The Weeknd show his vocal ability throughout the album but also has a producer credit on every track.

The album only contains two features, one with Tyler, the Creator and the other with Lil Wayne. Tyler’s verse comes on the track “Here We Go… Again” which carries a slower tempo compared to everything else on the album. Tyler does a great job in his verse and fans will be happy to see and hear the two finally collaborate. 

Wayne’s verse feels like a breath of fresh air towards the end of the album as his verse on the fourteenth track, “I Heard You’re Married.” It’s weird to hear Lil Wayne rap on a more pop-oriented song but it surprisingly works very well.

Towards the end of the album things begin to sound familiar, especially the songs “Don’t Break My Heart” and “Less Than Zero.” The only real letdown of this album is that some songs such as “Every Angels is Terrifying” tend to drag the album out a little too long, 

Despite only two credited features, actor Jim Carrey and legendary producer Quincy Jones are both also featured on interludes throughout the album. Carrey serves the more important role as the fictional D.J. for the “Dawn F.M” themed radio station. 

The Weeknd’s “Dawn FM” is another album that solidifies himself as one of the greatest of this generation, songs such as “Gasoline” and “Take My Breath” are ones that will be listened to years and years from now.

Rating 4 out of 5