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D'ANGELO : SOMETIMES IT SNOWS IN APRIL (FEAT. PRINCESS) (PRINCE COVER) (LIVE ON THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JIMMY FALLON, 4/26/16)

hazelcills

Thinking about The Weeknd singing “I only love it when you touch me, not feel me” on “The Hills,” a crueler, but dueling booty call anthem in 2015 to Drake’s “Hotline Bling,” which was peak sad boy feeling left out of his ex’s newfound freedom. There’s the fuckboy, the softboy, the thinkpieces and panels about “chill” as a romantic requirement today, and while being an asshole isn’t new certainly coldness, and the media’s obsession with distanced romantic interactions (fuck at the press of a button! date with a finger-swipe! have you heard of ghosting?) is now a bigger part of the hand-wringing conversation about youths 2 day.

It’s hard to listen to dvsn’s “Try / Effortless” and not think about this bullshit. In terms of being the archetypal, committal jerk, The Weeknd is cold, a total ghost on the spectrum, and Drake is far too hot, over-involved and mopey, but they’re both just as selfish. dvsn’s Daniel Daley is somewhere in the middle. Of course, “give you more than a little” caries the same implicit, sexual innuendo that runs through the whole record, but it’s explicit in stereotypical, hetero power dynamics. Women ask for more, men decide how much they’re willing to give. And none of the lyrics ever really end where you want them to. Changing isn’t a part of the equation, only trying is. “If I give you more than a little, you should know it’s something” as a declaration of romance somehow seems ruder than Tesfaye’s vampirism, and more annoying than Drake’s nice guy schtick. It kind of reminds me of Jason Derulo’s hit last year “Want to Want Me.” It’s not, “you’re the girl I want” it’s, “you’re the girl I want to want me.” “Try / Effortless” is deceptively sensual and complimentary, but it’s a song about trying hard that’s almost hilariously lazy. When Daley sings “I think you’re perfect for me,” can you actually believe him?

Also, this is one of my favorite records of the year (so far), up with Margo Price, Chairlift, and Junior Boys.