Thursday, October 8, 2009
No doubt one of the most anticipated hip hop albums of the year, Kid Cudi’s Man on the Moon: The End of Day lives up to the hype. After releasing a mixtape and catching the ear of Kanye West, Cudi made a quick jump to stardom, announced a faux-retirement and meanwhile constructed one of the most inventive hip hop albums of the past couple years.
It’s a rare thing to hear an artist with such a distinct style on his debut. Cudi is classified as a rapper but he does more singing than anything else here and even his raps are delivered melodically most of the time.
Subject-wise, Cudi reaches deeper than most rappers are willing to. He talks about losing his father on “Soundtrack 2 My Life,” which features one of the best opening lines I’ve heard in a while: “I’ve got 99 problems, and they all bitches.”
Relentless night terrors, loneliness, love and the pursuit of happiness are other subjects Cudi delves into with genuine feeling.
The album’s production fits well with these deep, often dark themes.
The Ratatat-produced tracks shine especially and MGMT also pops up on one of the album’s highlights.
The album is presented as a film with different acts and cheesy narration from rapper Common.
If all of this sounds kind of crazy, it is. Cudi is an artist with huge musical ambitions who sets out to accomplish with one record what other artists spend many doing. It’s not flawless, but with its combination of interesting subject matter, catchy hooks and unique production it’s not one to miss.
Two stars
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