The Weekend: Echoes Of Silence.

    A year ago, few knew who "The Weekend" was.  There was merely a cache of songs produced by an anonymous voice.  The cat is now out of the bag, and Abel Tesfaye has been outed as the owner of that angelic voice.

      Echoes of Silence was released at the end of 2011, and is the final of album of  a trilogy (the first two being House of Balloons, and Thursday.)  Tesfaye continues his claim to fame, which is depraved lyrics coming from his truly beatific voice.  The resulting juxtaposition is very haunting.  His production is a perfect for him; loaded with minimalist instrumentation, usually led by percussion and reverb, followed by grand swells.  The resulting product has taken both the Hip-Hop/R&B, and indie scene by storm. 

     While Echoes of Silence lacks the surprises of its predecessors, it is comes through as another strong album.  The Weekend exudes the same confidence and tragic narcissism that has made him so acclaimed.  He elaborates to his audience his late night tales of casual booze, drugs, and sex.  Musically, his songs establish that same strong sense of mood and longing, setting him above the other, more prominent, self disclosing, confessional, R&B artists (such as Drake).  There is an authenticity in Echoes that the listener becomes engulfed in, which creates in invested interest in the Tesfaye's eventual demise by the albums ending.  Echoes is an evocative journey through a tortured soul.
     The Weekend has finished his epic trilogy with a strong, albeit predictable ending.  Echoes of Silence once again displays an R&B toure de force at his most bare and brazen.   Only time will tell where and how The Weekend will evolve, but his credibility and authenticity as an artist certainly not be questioned.