I’ve never heard an album so bad, from an artist I normally love, that I had to take a break from because I was seriously feeling nauseous.
Around seventh grade, I went through a phase where I wholeheartedly believed I’d become a rockstar. Kid Cudi’s new album reminds me of the music I was making around that time, except even my guitar playing wasn’t this bad.
If you’re feeling bored, go on Youtube, find some crappy covers of “Smoke on the Water”, and throw them in the album; I guarantee it won’t feel out of place.
Okay, that’s enough roasting for now, I’ll slide into some concrete criticisms. The album is shoddily made, and while the lo-fi nature is intentional, it isn’t done well. Making good lo-fi music is a lot harder than it seems, and I don’t think that’s something Cudi will accept. This album speaks to a larger problem in Scott’s life, that is, his inability to accept criticism. Cudi has gone and made himself a South Park level of a safe space on Twitter, blocking anyone that doesn’t offer praise. I’m sure that when reading reviews of his album, that WILL sound similar to mine, Cudi will just point to the handful of creepy mega-fans that love it as a means of negating any legitimacy of criticism.
There is no subjective good to be found in tracks like “Seance Chaos” or “The Return of Chip Douglas”, neither can I offer any constructive commentary. A lot of these tracks are just bad music. Regardless of whatever genre Scott thinks he’s doing, it’s just bad. The album is painful, unlistenable, and as I said earlier, legitimately made me feel sick.
I did like “Embers”…so I guess one out of twenty six is…something.
You can find the album on iTunes, although I don’t know why you’d want to download it.
I’m going to post a good track from Scott, you don’t need to taint your idea of Cudi with SBTH.
art by your homie, Arthur Banach
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