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CRITIC REVIEWS
90
House of Balloons is a record comprised of slow-burning bangers, expertly crafted and dripping with a refreshingly ugly prettiness.
90
He commands the mood better than artists who have been in the game for years and yet this his first release.
86
An explosive debut unlike most of whatever is on Hot 97 or whatever your city uses to listen to Drake.
85
The group's penchant for druggy atmospherics is mirrored in their lyrical content, which is overtly sexual, narcotics-focused, and occasionally downright frightening.
80
They bring to the table the most interesting, depressing, and drug-infested R&B record in years.
80
For what The Weeknd have produced, regardless of what genre it is or isn’t, is a very good record.
80
This is a record that’s as ice cold as it is sad; for those who find Drake too much to stomach it might be off-putting, but for fans of the Canadian, it might just mark the arrival of a brand new obsession.
30
Though I'm all for any efforts the artists of today make to change the R&B landscape, the lyricism on this LP sticks up like an unwelcome weed.
The comparison has been made before, but The Weeknd is essentially Michael Jackson if he was a huge partygoer and suffered from endless depression and substance addiction. "House of Balloons" pretty much capitalizes this by instantly hitting us with its druggy atmosphere and Abel's tenor vocal delivery. His pen game isn't anything great, but this record makes the lyrics work in his favor. Overall, The Weeknd's debut mixtape stands, with the rest of "Trilogy", as his best ... read more
Dark, depraved and disturbing yet intensely provocative. I think it's safe to say that Abel changed the RnB game forever.
Has anyone watched fantanos review.... It's NOT GOOD.
Favorite Tracks: High For This, What You Need, House Of Balloons / Glass Table Girls
The Morning, Wicked Games, The Party & The After Party, The Knowing
Worst Track: Loft Music
Favorite Tracks: High For This, What You Need, House Of Balloons / Glass Table Girls
The Morning, Wicked Games, The Party & The After Party, The Knowing
Worst Track: Loft Music
A masterpiece that excelles in atmosphere and ambition that feels like your in the moment with the weeknd in his depravity. Even though the weeknds songwriting isn't fantastic vocally he's godly. The production is very mellow and dark with songs like What you need and wicked games and can be totally insane with my favorite track house of balloons/glass table girls. This project maybe the weeknds first project but it turns out to be his masterpiece
Edit: went full Stan mode
Edit: went full Stan mode
pitchfork.com
The Weeknd Shares Three New Songs 
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Year End Lists
| #1 | / | Complex |
| #1 | / | FACT Magazine |
| #2 | / | One Thirty BPM |
| #2 | / | Spinner |
| #5 | / | FILTER |
| #5 | / | Stereogum |
| #6 | / | A.V. Club |
| #6 | / | PopMatters |
| #7 | / | Billboard |
| #8 | / | The Guardian |
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Decade Lists
| #20 | / | Billboard (2010s) |
| #27 | / | Crack Magazine (2010s) |
| #37 | / | UPROXX (2010s) |
| #40 | / | Noisey (2010s) |
| #75 | / | Pitchfork (2010s) |
| #84 | / | Slant Magazine (2010s) |
MISC LISTS
| #9 | / | Stereogum (First Half) |
| #11 | / | FACT Magazine (2010-2014) |
| #11 | / | Pitchfork Readers |
| #15 | / | The Genius Community (2010s) |
| #18 | / | Complex Decade |
More Lists
Track List
- High For This
- What You Need
- House Of Balloons / Glass Table Girls
- The Morning
- Wicked Games
- The Party & The After Party
- Coming Down
- Loft Music
- The Knowing
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4mo
Just saying, without that Fantano review this would have one of those stars at the top of the cover.
