The Weeknd Rides the Wave on “Often”

The Weeknd posted new song "Often" without warning last night (June 24), and it's certainly closer in spirit to his 2011 mixtape material than it is to his more blown-out work on last year's Kiss Land. The beat bobs and weaves with pitch-shifted vocals spiraling in and out of focus, as Abel Tesfaye details what he'll do to your lady parts (though it's never as blush-worthy as his "Or Nah" remix).

It's a fine listen, but it's completely predictable at this point, making us wonder how much more of this until Tesfaye decides to change things up for real — say, by embracing noise (he flirted with it on "Belong to the World") or pop sheen (à la "Wanderlust").