Music Review: KiD CuDi – Man on the Moon: The End of Day
October 14, 2009
Release: September 15, 2009 on Dream On, G.O.O.D., Universal Motown
This is qui
te an ambitious Hip Hop debut. Scott Mescudi, better known as Kid Cudi, has released his anticipated first full length, Man on the Moon: The End of Day, following the hype generated by his mixtape earlier this year, A Kid Named Cudi. This is a concept album based upon Cudi’s cosmic journey spanning five acts, borrowing a page from Bowie, maybe. His resourcefulness shows by collaborating with Kanye, Common, MGMT, and Ratatat.
It’s very surprising that a lesser-established artist can gain Cudi’s amount of credibility before even putting out an LP. In songs like “Soundtrack 2 My Life” and “Heart of a Lion”, he flexes his lyrical muscles, showing he is able to hold his own when rapping about personal issues, such as childhood, mortality, and staying vigorous. Man on the Moon is not just a Hip Hop album. It channels neo-psychedelic, space rock influenced, electro-hop. The Ratatat produced tracks, “Alive” and “The Pursuit of Happiness” find they are naturally accustomed to the astronomical concept theme. The latter of the two is actually the third single and features psych-synth pop stars, MGMT, contributing chorus vocals. “CuDi Zone” also proves he can aggressively flow, impressing those who may have rejected his melancholic smash hit “Day N’ Nite” (the Crookers remix is worth checking out and is available on the deluxe LP). “Up, Up & Away” ends Man on the Moon in the final act with a very optimistic, uplifting beat. It leaves listeners joyful and wanting more.
Kid Cudi’s debut album is not a joke. It is the kind of hip-hop album that has wide appeal, while still being progressive in the genre. Its eagerness to force an evolution away from stale beats will inspire. The collaborators and producers clearly had much to do with that. The only major complaints are the ones that emerge strictly because this project strived so much. At times, some tracks seemed not entirely fitted in the celestial premise, but existed more to act as crowd pleasers. Thus, lyric topics are often the same individual laments heard in mainstream Hip Hop (albeit Cudi seems more existentially tormented than most). Man on the Moon: The End of Day is a leap for a genre in need of a revival and Kid Cudi delivers an adventure and album to jumpstart it.
This is quite an ambitious Hip Hop debut. Scott Mescudi, better known as Kid Cudi, has released his anticipated first full length, Man on the Moon: The End of Day, following the hype generated by his mixtape earlier this year, A Kid Named Cudi. This is a concept album based upon Cudi’s cosmic journey spanning five acts, borrowing a page from Bowie, maybe. His resourcefulness shows by collaborating with Kanye, Common, MGMT, and Ratatat.
It’s very surprising that a lesser-established artist can gain Cudi’s amount of credibility before even putting out an LP. In songs like “Soundtrack 2 My Life” and “Heart of a Lion”, he flexes his lyrical muscles, showing he is able to hold his own when rapping about personal issues, such as childhood, mortality, and staying vigorous. Man on the Moon is not just a Hip Hop album. It channels neo-psychedelic, space rock influenced, electro-hop. The Ratatat produced tracks, “Alive” and “The Pursuit of Happiness” find they are naturally accustomed to the astronomical concept theme. The latter of the two is actually the third single and features psych-synth pop stars, MGMT, contributing chorus vocals. “CuDi Zone” also proves he can aggressively flow, impressing those who may have rejected his melancholic smash hit “Day N’ Nite” (the Crookers remix is worth checking out and is available on the deluxe LP). “Up, Up & Away” ends Man on the Moon in the final act with a very optimistic, uplifting beat. It leaves listeners joyful and wanting more.
Kid Cudi’s debut album is not a joke. It is the kind of hip-hop album that has wide appeal, while still being progressive in the genre. Its eagerness to force an evolution away from stale beats will inspire. The collaborators and producers clearly had much to do with that. The only major complaints are the ones that emerge strictly because this project strived so much. At times, some tracks seemed not entirely fitted in the celestial premise, but existed more to act as crowd pleasers. Thus, lyric topics are often the same individual laments heard in mainstream Hip Hop (albeit Cudi seems more existentially tormented than most). Man on the Moon: The End of Day is a leap for a genre in need of a revival and Kid Cudi delivers an adventure and album to jumpstart it.
