Kid Cudi "Insano" (2024)

  
Keeping steady pace, Kid Cudi returns from Entergalactic with a loose concept. Taking twenty one shots, these shorter cuts seemingly throw out ideas to see what sticks. Linked together by recurring buzzy sub-base lines, the referenced insanity is heard instrumentally as the aesthetic experience explores an unusual spectrum of melodic presentation. Repetitive tunes often run through mild manipulations, playing into an artsy atmosphere. Trap beats bustle harder than usual. Kicks, claps, snares and hit-hats from all directions chime in, amping up the sequenced rhythmic energy. Its these base oriented tracks that mustered my attention as between them, Cudi leaned into his established style, smoothing out the records exit with a string of colorful songs.

Running commentary from a boisterous DJ Drama and lack of lyrical focus gave me little else to latch onto. Insano feels like a round up of studio time spent without direction. Vocally, Cudi spun his style with the records best hooks feeling almost recycled from previous records. Nothing offensive, the record just lacked anything with shock and awe. Electrowavebaby perked an ear for its redesign of Ace Of Base's All That She Wants. That's the second record of 2024 to include this memorable 90s hit. Its a fun track, flush with zany zapping sounds and some endearing singing. The second track Keep Bouncin' is a banger, the baseline melding with crisp pianos is a classy conclusion to its dark, speedy energy. Other than that, its a mediocre record with flashes of distinction that fade among its extensive tracks. Good for a mood tho.

Rating: 6/10

Kid Cudi "Entergalatic" (2022)

 

Having adored a collaborative Kids See Ghosts and the psychedelic tinged Cloud Rap of Man On The Moon III, time with the American rapper slash producer seemed overdue. Lured in by the infectious hypnotic mellow sways of Do What I Want, exploring this newest record seemed like the next logical step. Entergalatic plays like a river of vibes. Its a series of Ethereal moods drifting by, mostly pronounced by its dreamy instrumentals and Kid Cudi's ability to converge on a gratifying hook.

Most the lyrical verse seem like casual commentaries on life's unfolding events. Passing observations and emotive expressions suit the conjured atmosphere. Cudi arrives calmed, smooth and chill. The beats touch on tensions and introspective degrees, never veering to far from its soothing allure. Occasionally the percussive attachment drifts into restful, relaxing states as atmospheric ambiences take hold.

A track featuring 2 Chainz, Can't Believe It, arrives with apt timing, breaking up the mid point with a nightly low key banger. Cudi's deepened flow, mostly the hook, has an uncanny resemblance to Rich Brian. Its a welcome change of pace among a river of catchy hooks and ambiguous melodies that swoon sweetly to its own rhythm. Its Kudi alone who builds much of this rapport, his guests don't bring much to the table.

Despite such good graces, little emerges beyond the sway of its tantalizing yet mellow vibes. A selection of favorites will rear their heads among the variety but the album mostly slides into mediocrity. Fertile ground for embracing the mood but never commanding the listener to yield. Could of been much more despite easy enjoyment.

Rating: 6/10

Kid Cudi "Man On The Moon III" (2020)

 

Oh boy do I wish this album had arrived earlier in the year! I can't help but feel It would of made my up and coming top albums of the year list. Right now I'm intoxicated by its particular mood, an airy mix of club and urban street vibes, subdued by its laid back pacing and dreamy, psychedelic tinge. Records like this need time to mature and given how much I loved my introduction to Kid Cudi through Kids See Ghosts, a collaboration with Kanye West, I wouldn't be surprised if this one delivers its magic for time to come. After binge listening for days on end, it still has a sparkle.

Kid Cudi's voice is a charm, soft and moody, he drifts between casual R&B singing, spoken word temperaments and monotone raps all interwoven with spacey auto-tune both flavorful and expressive. Not one to linger to much on lyrics which generally go in one ear and out the other with me, I picked up an introspective individual reflecting on a moment to pause and expresses life with a kind warmness. Anchored to reality in its uplift and happier vibes, the music comes across with a slight sense of melancholy, humanistic and soulful, a connection to the reality that all good things come to pass.

The instrumentals compliment his tone well, these beats are tight and snappy yet spaced out with a keen sense of where silence has power, Quite often do they drop entirely for bars at a time. With a modern percussion design, one might mistake these drums for subdued Trap beats. Although they share some textural similarities the patterns being sparse and complimentary tend to serve the bigger picture, rather than dictate groove and bombast through the rhythmic drive. Behind them, bass kicks articulate the occasional melody and whenever given some direct attention one can really appreciate the art of subtlety at play on pretty much all these songs.

One number that stands apart is Show Out. Teaming up with London rapper Skepta and Pop Smoke it crosses over into Grime territory with a lively kick drum rattling off and grittier raps to lean on a darker mood. It slips in well to the overall tone which is more upbeat, led by Cudi's swooning sung vocals and synthetic backdrop. Many airy synth tones create these easy going atmospheres. Soft organs, choral voicing and all flavors of osculation in between forge a setting for subtle melodies to gracefully breeze with the easiness. A variety of instruments, pianos, guitars and keys give each track its texture and perhaps acoustic guitars that struggle most on Elsie's Baby Boy.

Somehow they seem to rub up against Cudi's voice, his held notes seeming off from the brightness of plucked strings. It illuminates that for all the praise, nothing is perfect. It seems wherever the main formula, which has plenty of variety, is strayed from, things don't quite hit the same heights. In praising the subdued percussion, the rattling Trap hi-hats of Sad People sounds a little grating. As an album it loads its better tracks in the front but given tracks are short and sweet, some not even crossing the three minute mark, its meaty eighteen tracks, just shy of an hour, it gets by as its weaker cuts tend not to linger for long. Given the mellow, indulgent fragrance of Man On The Moon III, it gets by but curation could of really elevated the experience.

Rating: 8/10

Kids See Ghosts "Kids See Ghosts" (2018)

This release is another in the so called "Wyoming sessions", its twenty something minutes spread across seven tracks, just like other Kanye produced records Nasir and Ye. This project has West collaborating with Kid Cudi under the Kids See Ghosts moniker and it kicks off with a fiery opener that sets a new president for gun play in Hip Hop music. A violent instrumental of sharp percussive strikes firing like gunshots rallying away, forming a groove as vocalizations of gun sounds take on a new form, they are sung and turned into a melody. Its over the top, theatrical and clever but not quite to my taste however the rest of the music takes on a much calmer vibes that have faint echos of psychedelia.

Kanye's instrumentals are on point, each track forges an atmosphere fit for the tone of his raps and Kid Cudi's halfway talking that's flat and toneless in delivery, sounds good when he softens it down into halfway singing on the self titled track. As per usual most the lyrics pass me by but Kanye drops in with a striking verse on Cudi Montage that has him painting the raw emotional reactions and forming their relevance to his wife's recent work with the president to get a pardon for false imprisonment.

Its really the underlying music that made this short record enjoyable for me. Getting to the core of his beats, they often sound minimal and stripped back, but the sounds they focus on do all the work to make these songs come to life with quite a few tie-ins between the verses to give it a lot of life. The singing and use of voices to spruce up tracks as so often is a treat and a mark of his style. It all comes together well and makes sense of the shorter run time, there are two others to come from this collection of records produced in his Wyoming studio and I'm quite excited to hear them after this one!

Favorite Tracks: Freeee, Kids See Ghosts, Cudi Montage
Rating: 7/10