ALBUM:Man on the Moon: The End of Day
SOUNDS LIKE: A better 808's & Heartbreak, with popier hooks, and darker verses.
FUN FACT: The Clipse and Snoop Dogg were both slated to be featured on the album, back when the project was still titled Man on the Moon: The Guardians.
WHY COMPLEX IS CO-SIGNING IT: If you haven't noticed, we ride with Kid Cudi around here. He may be a bit overly emotional at times, yeah, but what do you expect from the kid who was handpicked by Kanye West to help mold his most melancholic album to date? That said, personal misgivings aside, Dat Kid from Cleveland has managed to make some great music in the short time the public has known him. His first hit single, an ode to being stoned, "Day N' Night" did a lot for him. It had him in every lounge and night club in New York, LA and Miami, got him a placement on one of the best songs on Jay-Z's Blueprint 3 and it placed him in a group of similarly aged rappers (you know who they are) who were pegged as the next to blow. After listening to his mystifying, atmospheric G.O.O.D. Music debut, we've come to the conclusion that Cudi has no desire to be considered the "Best New Rapper". He's on some completely different shit. And it's dope.
Kid Cudi has been labeled a rapper with the sole reason being there's really no other category into which he fits. He's not quite a singer, although he masterfully and melodically drags out his voice for his extremely catchy hooks and choruses that work well to make his mostly dark and brooding verses more palpable to pop audiences. That's not to say he can't put a rhyme together, it's just that his rapping is more like a hum with words. Whatever it is he does, it works well with the production found on Man on the Moon, mostly provided by his manager, Emile. Along with some other like minded contributors, Cudi was able to construct a completely cohesive (save for the Chip tha Ripper featured track, "Hyyer") sound for the album.
That sound shines on tracks like "Soundtrack to My Life," "In My Dreams (Cudder Anthem)", "Cudi Zone" (both produced by Emile) and the Ratatat produced track "Pursuit of Happiness" which could be described as a dreamy, weed smokers version of Drake's "Successful". This album is dark, don't get it twisted. Although the album starts off with Cudi welcoming us to his dream, the album finds him describing his fears to us: women with sideways motives, his family relations and all the trappings of fame. Which is worrying because with an album this good, we're pretty sure he's going to be a lot more famous than he is now.
KEY TRACKS
Soundtrack to My Life
Cudi Zone
Pursuit of Happiness ft. MGMT & Ratatat
CLICK HERE TO BUY THE ALBUM ON MP3 FOR $3.99!
ithinkiloveher September 15th, 2009 at 06:39 PM
AMAZING album. bought it today.
Beast September 15th, 2009 at 07:05 PM
Dope album, everyone should support it.
Sean September 15th, 2009 at 07:42 PM
Bought it today. Best album I've bought all year.
He-Man Jones September 15th, 2009 at 08:27 PM
Album is dope perfect contrast to BP3. My World is sick!
word is bond - thats whats up September 15th, 2009 at 09:06 PM
He really is doin somethin totally new obviously kanye loves him but dont forget he is his own man he's not kanyes protege, kanye considers him an equal, even though Cudders is still new to the game The album is a real ride One of the few recent albums that must be listened to straight through its not a bunch of singles strung together, but one long and dark story support the man cause its an album thats actually worth buying
Mylo September 15th, 2009 at 09:29 PM
bought the deluxe 2day cudi been my favorite artist 4 a while now so i kne this album wud be amazing.
DezyDiablo September 15th, 2009 at 09:39 PM
...The album is horrible. His annoying out of tune singing in the age of autotune is unbearable...i dont like autotune and i would have been happier if he went that route because his crooning singing voice sucks ass.Then again i guess he couldnt have done that because it would be more of a 808's & Heartbreaks album clone then it already is. Lyrics and subject matter are overly redundant: he's very emo & loves weed/kush...alot,we get it! On the production for the album is outstanding...to the point where I wish there was a more talented artist that could do more with said beats (Andre 3000, Lupe Fiasco & Twista come to mind). Overall, Cudi is not much of a rapper or singer...which leads me to believe he's made a deal with Satan to get this far in the music world.
e-burn September 15th, 2009 at 11:25 PM
shut the front door!! this albums the best ive heard in ages!
Ode September 16th, 2009 at 12:43 AM
You obviously don't like music. I too was hypnotized by hip hop's redundant stupidity. luckily an artist like KiD CuDi came along. He's not a rapper or a singer. He just makes good music. The sad part is most people (probably you) wouldn't have listened to him if he wasn't advertised as a rapper. Try something new and stop being so caged in your box. You brought up Lupe Fiasco. You obviously don't listen to him. Because if you did then you would recall a song on his debut album (Food and Liquor) called "The Instrumental". It's about escaping the box that you are obviously trapped in
DezyDiablo September 16th, 2009 at 03:23 PM
You're making alot of "assumptions" about my music tastes i listen to literally anything and everything my ear likes...case in point i'm listening to the Rolling Stones "Sympathy for the Devil" as we speak and the next song on my playlist is Nas "Rule"...I have no problem with artists going outside the box: Common "Electric Circus" is one of my favorite albums for some reason...but theres has to be substance or something genuine about it. Cudi lyrics are mostly cliches with no substance. when he does actually talk about something in depth he only touches on it briefly to keep the song going then he goes right back to his musings about the Theme of the song.“Soundtrack to my Life” is about how nobody knows how depressed he is…But he never really talks about Why he’s depressed. At the beggining of the second verse he mentions that his dad died, but he never mentions anything else about that and just moves on to talking about how depressed he is.I've listen to the album atleast 3x and it hasnt grown on me.The product of the album is amazing bigups to Emile, Rattatat, Kanye West and anyone else for that. Finally, Ode Im sorry my "opinion" upsets you maybe you need to step outside your box.
T. Washington September 20th, 2009 at 02:27 PM
You know I guess some stuff has to touch you. Personally i love the album. Its message and emotion really reaches me on another level than say Overnight Celebrity, Kick Push, And Most OUTKAST songs. I guess I get where hes coming from in a way. The themes of loneliness, Escape, sadness are deep and really grip ya. And the beats are pretty serious, too.
TheCoolestKid November 8th, 2009 at 03:28 PM
You are a damn buffoon , to make that comment. This album is great.
OWL September 16th, 2009 at 01:02 AM
This album is the best that come out so far this yr (relapse and BP 3 also0....... i think all these hater need 2 chill out... i like thats hes different because frankly im just getting annoyed with rappers talkin about how G they are..... cant wait till my copy arrives.... umma b bumpin it like crazy
Billy ESQUIRE September 16th, 2009 at 02:21 AM
Best I have Heard , Bought, and only one I actually paid for this year
him September 16th, 2009 at 03:45 AM
i smell a man crush