House of Balloons

House of Balloons is the debut mixtape by Canadian singer the Weeknd. It was released as a free download on March 21, 2011, then was later released by XO. The mixtape was also released on the Weeknd's official website. Its music incorporates electronic and contemporary genres, including R&B and soul, along with trip hop, indie rock and dream pop tones.[2] The contributions to the mixtape's production came from Canadian record producers such as Doc McKinney, Zodiac and Illangelo, among others. On November 13, 2012, the Weeknd released his three-part compilation album Trilogy, where the first part is the House of Balloons mixtape.

House of Balloons
Mixtape by
the Weeknd
ReleasedMarch 21, 2011
GenreAlternative R&B[1]
Length49:34
LabelXO
Producer
The Weeknd chronology
House of Balloons
(2011)		 Thursday
(2011)
Singles from House of Balloons
  1. "Wicked Games"
    Released: September 25, 2012
  2. "Twenty Eight"
    Released: November 13, 2012

In September 2013, the Weeknd revealed that the House of Balloons is a real place, located at 65 Spencer Ave in Toronto.[3]

Music

The album's eclectic music uses samples of Beach House's "Master of None" (2006) and "Gila" (2008), and Aaliyah's 2001 song "Rock the Boat".[4] The title track heavily samples Siouxsie and the Banshees' 1980 single "Happy House".[5] The track "The Knowing" samples the 1990 track "Cherry-Coloured Funk" by Cocteau Twins.[6] Joe Colly of Pitchfork Media observed "weird, morning-after tales of lust, hurt, and over-indulgence", complemented by "lush, downcast music" on the album, and compared its "specific nocturnal quality" to that of The xx's 2009 self-titled debut.[7] Pitchfork's Eric Grandy wrote that the title track has the Weeknd "emoting in an androgynous falsetto one minute, muttering unbelievable curses the next".[8] Paul Lewster of The Guardian viewed that, although more than half of the mixtape features samples, only the title track makes it "evident".[9]

Promotion

The song "High for This" was featured in the promo for the final season of the HBO show Entourage in July 2011.[10] On November 24, 2011, the Weeknd's first official music video, for his song "The Knowing," hit the Internet on his Vimeo page.[11] The song was first released on House of Balloons and the video was directed by French filmmaker Mikael Colombu, who has also worked with singer Cee Lo Green.[12] The nearly eight-minute clip is described by authors Carrie Battan and Amy Phillips of Pitchfork as, "a time traveling, Afrofuturist, science fiction battle of the sexes that demands to be watched in HD."[13]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.0/10[14]
Metacritic87/100[15]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[16]
The A.V. ClubB+[17]
The Boston Phoenix[18]
Consequence of Sound[19]
Drowned in Sound8/10[20]
Fact4/5[21]
Now4/5[22]
Pitchfork8.5/10[23]
PopMatters9/10[24]
Rolling Stone[25]

House of Balloons received widespread critical acclaim, and is considered by many to be one of the most influential R&B releases in recent years.[26] Preceded by a string of low-profile buzz single releases throughout 2010, the mixtape attracted significant interest due to the then-anonymous identity of the individual behind the Weeknd. Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating based on reviews by industry professionals, gave House of Balloons a rating of 87, indicating "universal acclaim", based on 16 reviews.[15] Sean Fennessey of The Village Voice was impressed by the mixtape, calling it "patient, often gorgeous, and consistently louche... with the sort of blown-out underbelly and echo-laden crooning that has already made Drake's less-than-a-year-old Thank Me Later such an influential guidepost."[27] Maegan McGregor of Exclaim! stated that House of Balloons "easily stands as one of the year's best debuts so far, hipster, top 40 or otherwise."[28] Sputnikmusic's Tyler Fisher said that "despite being a free album, House of Balloons feels like a true album, a true labor of love."[29] Tom Ewing of The Guardian felt that while the Weeknd's vocals and lyrics on House of Balloons "aren't especially strong by R&B standards," much of the album's attention was attracted by its strong command of mood.[30]

In December 2011, Metacritic determined that House of Balloons was the third best-reviewed project of the year.[31] Additionally, the mixtape was featured on several music critics' and publications' end-of-year albums lists. Complex called it the "best album of 2011;"[32] Stereogum ranked it number 5;[33] The Guardian ranked it number 8;[34] The A.V. Club ranked it number 6;[35] SPIN ranked it (as well as Thursday) number 13;[36] while Pitchfork ranked it number 10.[37] As a whole, House of Balloons was the seventh most frequently mentioned album in music publications' year-end top ten lists.[38] The mixtape was named as one of the longlisted of nominees for the 2011's Polaris Music Prize.[39] The mixtape's title track, "House of Balloons" was placed on Pitchfork's list of top 100 songs of 2011 at number 57, while "The Morning" was number 15.[40]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."High for This"
4:07
2."What You Need"
  • Tesfaye
  • Jeremy Rose
  • Rose
  • The Weeknd
3:26
3."House of Balloons / Glass Table Girls"
6:47
4."The Morning"
  • Tesfaye
  • McKinney
  • Montagnese
  • Doc McKinney
  • Illangelo
5:15
5."Wicked Games"
  • Tesfaye
  • McKinney
  • Montagnese
  • Rainer Millar Blancheur
  • Doc McKinney
  • Illangelo
5:25
6."The Party & The After Party"
  • Rose
  • The Weeknd
  • Blanchaer
7:39
7."Coming Down"
  • Tesfaye
  • McKinney
  • Montagnese
  • Doc McKinney
  • Illangelo
4:55
8."Loft Music"
  • Tesfaye
  • Rose
  • Legrand
  • Scally
  • Rose
  • The Weeknd
6:04
9."The Knowing"
  • Doc McKinney
  • Illangelo
5:41
2012 reissue bonus track[41][42]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
10."Twenty Eight"
  • Tesfaye
  • McKinney
  • Montagnese
  • McKinney
  • Illangelo
4:18

Sample credits

  • On the version of the mixtape originally published online, "What You Need" contained a sample of "Rock the Boat" performed by Aaliyah.
  • "House of Balloons / Glass Table Girls" contains a sample of "Happy House" performed by Siouxsie and the Banshees.
  • "The Party & The After Party" contains a sample of "Master of None" performed by Beach House.
  • "Coming Down" contains a voice sample from the anime Fate/stay night that is not present on the Trilogy release.
  • "Loft Music" contains a sample of "Gila" performed by Beach House.
  • "The Knowing" contains a sample of "Cherry-Coloured Funk" performed by Cocteau Twins.

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[43] Silver 60,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Abebe, Nitsuh (August 14, 2011). "R&B Records With an Indie Affect". New York. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
  2. Matt Carney, "New Music Tuesday: 'House of Balloons' by The Weeknd," Archived 2013-11-05 at the Wayback Machine The Oklahoma Daily, April 19, 2011.
  3. "The Weeknd Reveals Origin Of Name, "House Of Balloon" Whereabouts & More On Reddit". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved 2017-03-24.
  4. various authors (2011-12-19). "The 25 Best Albums of 2011". complex.com. Retrieved 2012-03-16.
  5. Neyland, Nick."The Weeknd’s House Of Balloons" Archived 2012-07-23 at the Wayback Machine. Pitchfork. 2011-03-28.
  6. whosampled (2013-03-02). "The Weeknd's The Knowing sample of Cocteau Twins's Cherry-Coloured Funk". Who Sampled. Retrieved 2013-03-02.
  7. Colly, Joe (2011-03-29). "Album Reviews - The Weeknd - House of Balloons". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2011-03-29.
  8. "The Top 100 Tracks of 2011 - Our list of the best songs of the year". Pitchfork. 2012-12-12. Retrieved 2013-01-11.
  9. "Best albums of 2011, No 8: The Weeknd – House of Balloons". The Guardian. December 7, 2011. Retrieved January 11, 2013.
  10. Osei, Anthony (22 May 2011). "The Weeknd Entourage". complex.com. Retrieved 2012-03-16.
  11. from xoxxxoooxo (2011-11-24). "The Weeknd - The Knowing (Official Video) on Vimeo". Vimeo.com. Retrieved 2013-07-11.
  12. "Video: The Weeknd "The Knowing"". Complex. 2011-11-24. Retrieved 2013-07-11.
  13. "Video: The Weeknd: "The Knowing" | News". Pitchfork. 2011-11-25. Retrieved 2013-07-11.
  14. "House of Balloons by The Weeknd reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  15. "Reviews for House of Balloons by The Weeknd". Metacritic. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  16. Kellman, Andy. "House of Balloons – The Weeknd". AllMusic. Retrieved November 17, 2012.
  17. Rytlewski, Evan (April 5, 2011). "The Weeknd: House of Balloons". The A.V. Club. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
  18. Battan, Carrie (April 27, 2011). "The Weeknd | House of Balloons". The Boston Phoenix. Archived from the original on March 1, 2016. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
  19. Koren, Daniel (April 13, 2011). "Album Review: The Weeknd – House of Balloons". Consequence of Sound. Archived from the original on July 27, 2011. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
  20. Pott-Negrine, David (August 3, 2011). "Album Review: The Weeknd – House of Balloons". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
  21. Lea, Tom (April 1, 2011). "The Weeknd: House of Balloons". Fact. Archived from the original on October 20, 2016. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
  22. Ritchie, Kevin (March 31, 2011). "The Weeknd – House Of Balloons". Now. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
  23. Colly, Joe (March 29, 2011). "The Weeknd: House of Balloons". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 17, 2012.
  24. Beasley, Corey (May 9, 2011). "The Weeknd: House of Balloons". PopMatters. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
  25. Hermes, Will (April 5, 2011). "House of Balloons". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 17, 2012.
  26. "How House of Balloons Changed R&B". The FADER. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
  27. Fennessey, Sean (March 23, 2011). "Love vs. Money: The Weeknd, Frank Ocean, and R&B's Future Shock". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on May 12, 2011. Retrieved March 29, 2011.
  28. McGregor, Maegan (March 28, 2011). "Get the Latest from the Weeknd, Teenage Kicks, TV on the Radio and More in This Week's Click Hear Roundup". Exclaim!. Retrieved March 29, 2011.
  29. Fisher, Tyler (March 25, 2011). "The Weeknd – House of Balloons". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved March 29, 2011.
  30. Ewing, Tom (March 24, 2011). "The Weeknd's VIP Area Exposé Was Made for the Indie Crowd". The Guardian. Retrieved March 29, 2011.
  31. "The Best Albums of 2011". Metacritic. December 30, 2011. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  32. "The 25 Best Albums of 2011". Complex. 2011-12-19. Retrieved 2013-07-11.
  33. "Stereogum's Top 50 Albums of 2011". Pitchfork. December 5, 2011. Retrieved January 15, 2012.
  34. "Best albums of 2011". The Guardian. December 7, 2011. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
  35. "The best music of 2011". The A.V. Club. December 6, 2011. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
  36. "SPIN's 50 Best Albums of 2011". Spin. December 12, 2011. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
  37. "Staff Lists: The Top 50 Albums of 2011". Pitchfork. December 15, 2011. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  38. "2011 Music Critic Top Ten Lists". Metacritic. January 7, 2012. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
  39. "2011 Polaris Music Prize Long List announced" Archived 2015-10-02 at the Wayback Machine. aux.tv, June 16, 2011.
  40. "The Top 100 Tracks of 2011". Pitchfork. December 12, 2011.
  41. "House of Balloons – The Weeknd". AllMusic. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  42. "House of Balloons by The Weeknd". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  43. "British album certifications – The Weeknd – House of Balloons". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved May 17, 2019. Select albums in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type House of Balloons in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
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