The New York Times - 90 - “After Hours,” his rousing fourth studio album, is laden with sparkled trauma, kaleidoscopic emotional confusion, urgent and panting physical release paired with failed-state romantic dyspepsia.

nytimes.com/2020/04/01/arts/music/the-weeknd-after-hours-review.html

The Guardian - 4/5 "Abel Tesfaye is starting to show remorse for his failed relationships – but only a little bit – on this wonderfully varied yet cohesive record"

theguardian.com/music/2020/mar/20/the-weeknd-after-hours-album-review-abel-tesfaye

The Independent (UK) - 4/5 "‘After Hours’ abandons the danceability of its predecessor ‘Starboy’ in favour of moody introspection"

independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/the-weeknd-album-review-after-hours-stream-tracklist-max-martin-features-lyrics-a9413706.html

New Musical Express (NME) - 4/5 "his most all-encompassing record to date is also an existential quandary"

nme.com/reviews/album/the-weeknd-after-hours-review-his-most-all-encompassing-record-to-date-is-also-an-existential-quandary-2632591

NowToronto - 4/5 "The Scarborough-bred pop phenom gets into 80s synth-pop sounds but stays true to his moody R&B roots"

nowtoronto.com/music/album-reviews/the-weeknd-after-hours

Exclaim - 8/10 "The 14-track LP touches upon themes of sex, infidelity, substance abuse and the mind of a man torn between life as a contemporary pop icon and a past life of crime and misguidedness."

exclaim.ca/music/article/the_weeknd-after_hours

The Arts Desk - 4/5 "The Weeknd is that rarest of creatures, a pop star whose work still chomps at the boundaries"

theartsdesk.com/new-music/album-weeknd-after-hours

Variety - 94/100 "After Hours” is one of the most successful musicians of the past decade testing the balance between innovation and commerciality as much as anyone today."

variety.com/2020/music/reviews/the-weeknd-after-hours-album-review-1203539981

Evening Standard - 3/5 "Shadowy escapism for the great lock-in"

standard.co.uk/go/london/music/the-weeknd-after-hours-review-a4392746.html

US Weekly - 3/4 "The Weeknd Finds Clarity in Heartbreak on ‘Moody’ and ‘Sharply Produced’ New Album ‘After Hours’"

usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/the-weeknd-after-hours-review-album-centers-on-heartbreak

Pitchfork - 7.9 "Abel Tesfaye finally delivers on his long-running vision, leveraging a self-loathing villain into an irresistible, cinematic narrative with his most satisfying collision of new wave, dream pop, and R&B."

pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/the-weeknd-after-hours

Consequence of Sound - A- "What makes After Hours different from all of the other Weeknd albums is that we hear the singer learning how to feel without the aide of d**** or casual sex. After Hours is the star becoming emotionally unraveled, left picking at the remnants of a failed relationship. No, it’s not comparable to old Weeknd material, nor should it be. As he evolves, he continues to reinvent himself, and he knows exactly how to leave fans hooked on havoc. And After Hours is proof that he’s not done with us yet; in fact, he’s just getting started."

consequenceofsound.net/2020/03/album-review-the-weeknd-after-hours

TheNeedleDrop - 7/10

Is doing better than I expected tbh

He don't got love from critics since EOS

KING

S*** is some God level production even though a lot of the lyrics pretty basic I broke your heart type s***

i mean hes a pop star

"The Weeknd’s strongest record in some time, but still there’s a nagging question of what’s to come. Because once you go pop, and then back to your roots, where exactly do you go next? "

This is so accurate.

Ya but it’s boring to listen to

this is so nice

alone again is the soundtrack to my lonely nights

:​these reviews feel off tbh. like they were forced to give it a good score, but then they add this -

*"Notably, “Lost in the Fire”, The Weeknd’s 2019 collaboration with Gesaffelstein, does not appear. And it shouldn’t – the song has him making the homophobic demand that his ex-lover bring a friend over for a threesome so he can “f** you straight”

“Heartless”, annoyingly placed at the centre of the record, is one of just two tracks that really jars; apparently an attempt to hark back to that earlier persona. The other is the rather tedious interlude “Repeat After Me”, which reads like a beginner’s guide to gaslighting."

Definitely many critics probably didn't expect/want the album to be good, but they can't deny it.

Said this on the album thread, I still have a feeling that the reviews will end up pretty lackluster for this, this ain’t Trilogy era Abel, critics haven’t f***ed with him in almost 10 years is what it is smh

frank stans shook

only one that matters

ktt2.com/brr-b-reviewz-45426/5

because he hasnt been good in almost 10 years, thats why

7 years actually

the Lost In The Fire one is so unnecessary that is laughable

snowchild

aryans praise elevator music

i mean if you can think for yourself why would you read a review

did dude imply that after hours was a return to his roots?

cause critic reviews are more detailed than "this record is good" or "this record is trash"