The Weeknd: Trilogy – review

The first phrase you might use to describe this 3CD, 30-track compilation of all the Weeknd's recorded material to date is "good value". At least you might if all this material hadn't already been released, in three parts and for free, online. Still, to listen to Trilogy is to confirm that with his distorted R&B Abel Tesfaye has developed a powerful and distincitive musical voice. Lascivious but muted, whether by drugs or post-millennial ennui, Tesfaye's songs are sensual and saddening at the same time. They come on hot, but leave you cold, and because of that they're deeply affecting. The three parts – House of Balloons, Thursday and Echoes of Silence – offer a rough trajectory of party, after-party and hangover, through which an assertive voice gives way to one that sounds more troubled. Trilogy does remove some of the Weeknd's mystique – lyrical formulae become apparent, and examples of engaging melody recede as the collection advances. Whatever its limits, however, Trilogy remains a striking piece of work.