The Weeknd's long awaited fourth studio album After Hours is finally coming, teased to us in a five minute short film that premiered on YouTube last Wednesday (March 4). Snippets of new tracks play as we watch The Weeknd, real name Abel Tesfaye, finish up an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! with an uncomfortably forced smile that soon falls from the bloodied face he's been sporting since the Blinding Lights music video. He leaves the studio and heads to a subway station where he becomes seemingly possessed as he is thrown around the platform. He later finds himself in an elevator, accompanied by a couple that meet their demise as Tesfaye descends into a manic, frenzied version of himself.
After Hours, the third instalment of the 'After Hours' narrative, is in keeping with the aesthetics of the videos for Heartless and Blinding Lights with psychedelic visuals - not dissimilar to Josh and Benny Safdie's Uncut Gems in which Tesfaye had a minor role playing the 2012 version of himself. Throughout the three videos, all of which were directed by Anton Tammi, Tesfaye sports a red blazer, perhaps a nod to Joaquin Phoenix's Joker costume, that is reminiscent of Michael Jackson's leather jacket in the Thriller video. In Blinding Lights, Tesfaye shows off Joker-esque dance moves, perhaps an indicator of what was to come in After Hours.
The Weeknd's fourth studio album, After Hours, will be released on 20 March.