the weeknd - the party & the after party

Sex doesn't just sell; sex is the engine of summer. It's a 300-horsey V8 that, once you get it purring, can power an entire season.

When The Weeknd dropped their "House of Balloons" mixtape, I didn't initially have plans to check it out. Really, R&B was never a big part of my library. Sure, I liked Janelle Monae's stuff, and Kanye's new CD was pretty good, too, but I'd never come all that close "pure" R&B. I didn't think I'd like it, so I preempted myself.

Would've been a mistake to hold to that.

Instead, I gave in and threw "House of Balloons" on for a spin. I don't regret it for a second, and I say that as someone who still doesn't seem himself as anything resembling a R&B convert (yet?). The mixtape is dripping with sensuality; slow burns that could soundtrack the best steamy scenes in the recesses of your mind ("What You Need"), or driving pulses that might make you want to step out from under the covers and jam a little bit ("House of Balloons - Glass Table Girls").

But the highlight of this tape is, for me, "The Party." It has everything that makes the whole album great, from those slow burns to a pulsing beat to a suave croon that just flat-out enjoyable in its sexiness. Abel Tesfaye has an absolutely perfect voice for this style of music, and I think it's safe to say that I find myself looking forward to two more reported mixtapes this year.

This track is, while relatively tame, not safe for work.