Kid Cudi is too busy right now and wants to make mid-2000s Future look like Frank Ocean. Just weeks after the release of his ninth album INSANO, he has unveiled what he calls a “continuation” of the project titled INSANO (NITRO MEGA).
NITRO MEGA isn’t just a bonus edition with a few bonus tracks, it’s a massive 18-track album that shows what this decidedly uneven original album could have been like.
NITRO MEGA is chasing less of the trap bounce of close collaborator Travis Scott and more of homegrown Cudi, combining his melancholy vocals with futuristic sounds from a massive wall of influence.
Pusha T’s collaboration “EVERYBODY LIKE” combines furiously distorted guitars with booming bap beats, and it’s this kind of experimental psychedelia from which Cudi has built an army of stoner fans while still being respected in hip-hop circles. .
“All My Life” is the closest thing to a late-2000s throwback song that Cudder fans loved. He eschews rap in favor of singing on this heartfelt song, which contains Cudi’s classic themes of loneliness and existentialism. In addition to his signature harmonies, Cudi sings: “See the picture? It was designed to smile/Something happened, that’s what’s gone/To you baby/I said my love, “This is the most meaningful thing he’s said in a while.
However, not every creative choice on the album is a success: “WILLIS” is anesthetized to the extreme, seeming to reject all notions of what the song actually is. It’s a harrowing four-minute interlude and his biggest misstep since Speedin Bullet 2 Heaven.
Meanwhile, Steve Aoki-produced “ELECTROWAVE BABY 2.0” was a background song for a pending “Fast and Furious” movie, and Cudi was uncomfortable with its generic dance number. This is an experiment that should be acknowledged as a failure.
The album is again surprisingly long, swells with positivity in the final section, and ends on a high with the dramatic “Superboy,” which captures the ethereal quality of Cudi’s earlier work, even if it does lack something thematically and lyrically depth. Like “Ghost!” from Man on the Moon: The Legend of Mr. Regg.
When looking at both projects (all 39 tracks), it’s hard not to think that Better Discipline would have produced a better, more cohesive album than the two released. While INSANO discovered Cudi in more public celebration mode, NITRO MEGA had more reflective moments but also felt the pressure of being deemed not good enough for a first release.
Release date: February 23, 2024
Record label: Republic/UMG
Listen to INSANO (NITRO MEGA) below:
