Frankly, it was worth all those meltdowns. Definitely not what people expected from him, and kudos for that. Frank has matured a lot since 2012 and 'Blonde' reflects it flawlessly. Each of these 17 songs tells a different story, even those dumb interludes that still somehow make you smile.
Considering that I'm a Verified 'The King of Limbs' Stan ✔, I would never call it a return to form. Sure, it's better, but I won't let anyone disrespect 'TKOL'. But back to 'AMSP', despite a few very Radiohead-y gimmicks (tracklist in alphabetical order, announcing the record 2 days prior its release), it's nothing but quality. The singles are obvious highlights, but it's the album tracks that truly shine - Beach House-y (!) "Decks Dark", maybe my favourite deep cut since "House of Cards", Present Tense" or stunning two decades old "True Love Waits".
Who the **** cares if it's overrated/overhyped or not? This is the best mainstream pop single of the year. Period.
This feels like an instant classic, doesn't it? The lyrics are very clever, especially this a witty "Round and Round"-esque line: "We are not a proud race/It's not a race at all". Oh yeah, and I lose my **** every time the main choruses hit at 3:17 and 4:27.