[youtube=http://youtu.be/nNTyfVh3nmU]
It never gets to a climax itself: Usher’s magnificent performance here, which is justifiably much louder than anything else on the recording, is all tension building and no release (it starts with his 800-thread satin falsetto), and pulls back every time it seems like it’s building toward a lunge forward. You could say the same for the song itself, with its lyrics that are phrased like a seduction but are actually about a dead-end relationship. It denies its listeners the pleasure of a destination; instead, we get to focus on the thrill of where it is at every moment.