Length 50:21 Release date 18 August 2011 Producers Doc McKinney, Illangelo | Artist The Weeknd Label Republic Records | |
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Released August 18, 2011 (2011-08-18) Thursday
(2011) Echoes of Silence
(2011) Genres Contemporary R&B, Alternative R&B Similar The Weeknd albums, Contemporary R&B albums | ||
The weeknd lonely star
Thursday is the second mixtape by Canadian singer The Weeknd, independently released on August 19, 2011. It follows his critically acclaimed, Polaris Music Prize-nominated debut mixtape House of Balloons (2011). Its music incorporates downtempo, dubstep, dream pop, hip hop, rock and reggae styles. As with his previous works, Canadian record producers Doc McKinney and Illangelo were responsible for production of the mixtape. Young Money artist Drake contributes guest vocals to the track "The Zone".
Contents
Thursday received generally positive reviews from critics, who drew comparisons to House of Balloons. "Rolling Stone" and "The Birds Part 1" were released as buzz singles to precede the mixtape's release. Thursday was later remastered and packaged with The Weeknd's compilation album Trilogy (2012).
Critical reception
Thursday received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the mixtape received an average score of 80, based on 17 reviews. Evan Rytlewski of The A.V. Club said, "It's a rare songwriter who can craft music that's so repellent yet also so irresistible." Alex Young of Consequence of Sound said, "Despite the ridiculously high highs of this album, it fails to maintain a great pace throughout. It struggles back and forth between "good" and "great," whereas its foregoer grabbed "great" by the balls on the first track and never let go." Benjamin Boles of Now said, "It's not quite perfect: his voice is the star of the show but is occasionally buried under the clever beats and production. But that's a small complaint about someone who's looking more and more like one of the most exciting artists to emerge this year." Q magazine stated, "Toronto outfit, The Weekend, have been hailed as one of the most exciting new sounds in modern R&B -- hype that, on the basis of this equally startling follow-up, seems entirely justified." Brandon Soderberg of Pitchfork said, "Though there's less breathing space on Thursday, and fewer melodic hooks, it still feels of a piece with House of Balloons."
BBC Music's Mike Diver made a positive review, saying, "File him beside Frank Ocean as an R&B star set to climb to new heights in 2012." Matthew Cole of Slant Magazine wrote, "The Weeknd is in full command of his craft, and at this point it's almost impossible for me to imagine that he won't deliver on the finale. He's earned my trust, as would any other artist who had already released two of the year's best albums." Tyler Fisher of Sputnikmusic said, "Listening to something like Thursday is the ultimate form of escapism that so many of us flock to music for. That's a quality that should be celebrated, not criticized for its lack of immediate pleasure." Jody Rosen of Rolling Stone gave a mixed review, commenting, "While it's refreshing to hear an R&B singer emphasizing the psychic toll of libertinism, his angst sex grows tiresome. Once in a while, can't this dude just get laid, and have fun doing it?" Ross Green of Tiny Mix Tapes said, "But by continuing to relentlessly mine the same fundamentally limited descriptions of groupies and Schedule VI narcotics, The Weeknd risks coming off as bored as its debauched narrator."
Track listing
Sample credits
Songs
Thursday
Life Of The Party
The Zone ft Drake