Kid Cudi - Indicud

Kid Cudi - Indicud

Released: 12 April 2013

Genre: Hip Hop, Alternative Hip Hop

Fav Tracks: Lord Of The Sad And Lonely, Just What I Am, Immortal, Solo Dolo Part II, The Resurrection Of Scott Mescudi, Beez, Brothers, Young Lady, King Wizard, Cold Blooded

Least Fav Tracks: Girls, Afterwards (Bring Yo Friends)

Review: If you don't know the history of Kid Cudi refer to the 'Man On The Moon' review we did earlier. I really love Cudi but I'm not sure if i love this album.

The first track 'The Resurrection of Scott Mescudi' is a very cinematic introduction to the album. It's a very unique and enjoyable song. The next track 'Unfuckwittable' has some really questionable vocals, and a really simple beat. However i do like the synths and sounds that are painted throughout this song and throughout this album as a whole. The next track 'Just What I Am' has a really nice intro with some twisted synths and 'King Chip' talking about his relationship with god. I didn't mind the large robot voice on the chorus. I really liked King Chips' verse but Kid Cudi's verse, although being introspective, had a messy flow. However I still thoroughly enjoyed this track. The next song 'Young Lady' has a really nice instrumental but Cudi's lyrics are ridiculous. He rhymes 'Afar' with 'Star' twice in the same song... right beside each other. The vocals are also way lower in volume than the booming instrumental. It ends up making the song sound messy. I still really love the instrumental as it changes the 'Father John Misty' sample a lot.

What I noticed in this album is that the production on these songs are WAY simpler and weaker than the ones on his two previous albums. It's like some kid learning to make beats for the first time in his life. He really needs to bring back 'Ratatat' and the rest.

The next song 'King Wizard' has a nice song topic and Cudi has a really nice flow on the song but the instrumental feels lacking. The instrumental just feels so bare bones, but I really like the chorus. The song was great up until the end when the robot sounds started to come in. I don't know why, but they did. The song is still overall fun to listen to. 'Immortal' has one of the best instrumentals on the album and Cudi's vocals on this song are the best on the album. The lyrics of the songs are very unique for the album. This song is basically a more powerful version of 'Alive' on the first Man On The Moon. 'Solo Dolo Part II' which is a sequel to the first 'Solo Dolo' has a really nice instrumental and some funny lyrics. This song features 'Kendrick Lamar' who has a great flow on this track. However I don't think this is better than the first 'Solo Dolo', but it does have a sample that's mixed in the same way as the first Solo Dolo. 'Girls' has a terrible hook in which he just repeats "So many coulours and sizes, so many different surprises". The songs instrumental is SUPER weak with lazy 80's sounding synths and Cudi sounding more childish (and creepier) than ever. Tate gave up after this song. Seriously Cudi unintentionally sounds like a stalker on this track. I actually like the instrumental no matter how cheesy it is but these lyrics are so weak. 'Too $hort' is also on this song. His verse was somehow worse than Cudi's. This is definetely my least favourite track on the album.

So far what i think about this album is that if you originally liked Cudi you will keep seeing new angles of his albums. This album isn't like his first two albums which I loved, it's so much more experimental, so I guess if you didn't like Cudi at first you might hate this.

'New York City Rage Fest' is an instrumental track. It's just a pretty boring instrumental. 'Red Eye' with the band 'Haim' has some very pop sounding production because of the synths that were used with some lyrics talking about stuff that Cudi talked about better in other songs. This track is okay. 'Mad Solar' has some bad production but some good lyrics. The production sounds really annoying and lazy. The song could have been a great song if it had better production. 'Beez' with 'Wu-Tang Clan' legend 'RZA'  has some okay production and some amazing lyrics from RZA.

'Brothers' with King Chip and 'A$AP Rocky' has some nice production with some lyrics about their relationships with their close friends. 'Burn Baby Burn' has some questionable production with some lyrics that go from being good to just really weird, but not weird in a good way. This song is pretty hit or miss for me. 'Lord Of The Sad And Lonely' is a really good song to continue on with the vibe of Man On The Moon I and II. The cheap sounding production works on this track. The lyrics for this track are inciteful and interesting. This song is like a really awesome army anthem sound or something. Cudi also has a really nice flow on this track. 'Cold Blooded' is a song with some really nice production and some lyrics that tell us slightly more about Cudi as a person. On this song Cudi brings his best flow on the album.

'Afterwards (Bring Yo Friends)' is a nine minute long borefest. The song has some good singing by 'Michael Bolton' and some okay rapping from King Chip but the repitition in this song just ruins it. Bolton repeats 'bring your friends' so many times that It just becomes painful. After five minutes this song just becomes soul suckingly bad. However I enjoyed the production at the second side of the track. 'The Flight Of The Moon Man' just isn't as good as the intro track.

This album was pretty hit or miss. Some tracks were really great, some tracks weren't and other tracks just didn't need to be on the album. Girls, Afterwards (Bring Yo Friends) and New York City Rage Fest DEFINETELY needed to be removed. There are song really good tracks aswell. The poor production is also a problem as it just sounds lazy and cheap and destroys the path that his first two albums layed out. In fact everything in this album destroyed that path. Hopefully 'MOTM III' won't do that. There's also a wide and confusing variety of features such as Michael Bolton and Father John Misty. This albums main problem is its production. Cudi should stop self-producing his own tracks because everything just feels boring with the lazy and cheap production. Nearly all of these songs have some really good synths that feel cinematic and atmospheric. However these synths are wasted by being used lazily. Cudi should mix the synths he used for two different songs and use them for one song. The dongs with the least amount of synths and sounds end up sounding weak and bare bones. He would have a great and short album on his hands if he did that. This album is still worth a listen, but be cautious.

Rating: 6/10

Hodgy Beats - Fireplace:TheNotTheOtherSide

Hodge Beats - Fireplace: TheNotTheOtherSide

Released: 9th December 2016

Genre: Hip Hop

Fav Tracks: Resurrection, They Want, Tape Beat Ft. Lil Wayne, Turkoise, Final Hour, DYSLM

Least Fav Tracks: Dreaminofthinkin

Review: 'Hodgy Beats' is a rapper who is part of the collective 'Odd Future'. Odd Future have only really spawned three worthwhile artists: Tyler The Creator, 'Earl Sweatshirt' and Hodgy Beats. This is his debut album which was released under the 'Odd Future' label.

The first track 'Nitro' which is an anagram of Intro, is a phone call in which the woman in the call explains how it feels to die rich. 'Kundalini' is a track about Hodgy being tested in life by the devil and about him "cutting demons off like an exorcism". The track has some nice lyrics from Hodgy and 'Solomon Faye' but the production feels wonky and silly. The track 'Barbell' has some nice lyrics with soulful production. The lyrics talk about how people shouldn't try and step up to his lyrical quality if they aren't being true. This track is the first single released for the album. 'Resurrection' is a song where Hodgy talks to the lord about his life. The song has an amazing instrumental with some introspective lyrics. 'They Want' has some really nice production and some great lyrics about how people want him to fail. The story told in this song is really interesting. However this song has some weird edits and 'censors' (I use the term censors loosely) over words that aren't even swear words. Such as "mirrors", "scars", and "boss". This was weird especially since there are swear words in this song that aren't censored. 'Final Hour' has some energetic lyrics from Hodgy and 'Busta Rhymes' who really gives pure energy to the track.

I'm starting to notice that the random censoring seems to be a running theme throughout this album. I don't know why but it is. 'Glory' has a boring instrumental and some forgettable lyrics. The censoring in this song is specifically terrible as there's so much of it. 'Laguna' has some nice lyrics and spacey production but the way it's mixed makes it sound messy and unorganised. His vocals on the chorus are just lazily placed on top of each other. 'Turkoise' with fellow Odd Future member 'Domo Genesis' is a nice love song with some nice lyrics and amazing flows. The production for this song is nice and laid back. 'Tape Beat' has some really nice jazzy production from 'BADBADNOTGOOD'. Hodgy has a nice flow on this track and 'Lil Wayne' (who hasn't exactly been flawless in the past few years) delivers some actually enjoyable lyrics. 'Dreaminofthinkin' has some okay lyrics but they're ruined by the abismol production on this track. I honestly like the sample the producer chose, but it's mixed into the beat in a way that makes it jarring to listen to. This was honestly a very confusing choice for Hodgy to leave this in the album. 'The Now' has okay production but thinks time the lyrics are mixed in a really weird and confusing way. I have no idea why this is being done. The song also ends suddenly. 'DYSLM' (Do You Still Love Me) is a hilarious track about Hodgy’s ex-girlfriend & baby’s mother who has moved on and found someone else, but Hodgy is still attached. The track tells the funny conversation he had between him and his ex's new boyfriend.

This album's religious discussion might confuse the listener if they know about Hodgy's past of atheism with 'Mellowhype' and 'Odd Future'. The production also plays a large role in this album as it has a large variety of different producers. I honestly enjoy Hodgy's constant flipping through many different types of rappers. From political, to religious, to energetic etc. If Hodgy removed the random censors and kept the production going towards one general sound, I think this album would be amazing but for now this album is just enjoyable.

Rating 7/10

Pink Guy - Pink Season (Jordan's review)

Pink Guy - Pink Season

Released: 4th January 2017

Genre: Comedy Hip Hop

'|' denotes a tie between songs.(yeah i was that torn on this one)

Fav Tracks: |White Is Right, FLEX LIKE DAVID ICKE, Rice Balls,| |Small Dick, Nickelodeon Girls,| STFU, Fried Noodles, |Gays 4 Donald, She's So Nice,| Help, PLEASE STOP CALLING ME GAY, Another Earth, |Dog Festival Directions, Dora,| Meme Machine

Least Fav Tracks: We Fall Again

Review: This album is the follow up to Pink Guy's debut album 'Pink Guy'. Pink Guy is a character from the youtube channel 'Filthy Frank'

The first song "Hot Nickel Ball On A Pussy" is funny at first but it gets repetitive after a minute. However it is a nice intro for the album. The next song "Are You Serious" is a parody of popular trap music. It isn't really funny as it sounds EXACTLY like the music it's trying to parody, 

however i do like how much more expensive the instruments and sounds used sound.

"White Is Right" is a HILARIOUS parody of white culture in America. It's both funny, true and catchy. The next song "I Have A Gun" isn't really as funny as the last track but it's still a funny parody of people in America who own guns. The song ends too abruptly. "Nickelodeon Girls" is actually both funny and catchy. It's the perfect way to ruin someone's childhood. "STFU" is a song i heard before the release of the album and I really do love this song. It's hilarious but also has very expensive sounding production. Very catchy, offensive and funny. "Gays 4 Donald" is another funny, offensive song about white culture, specifically Donald Trump running for presidency. The song gets repetitive though as he just repeats stuff he's already said on other songs on this album. I do think the production is deep and dark.

"I DO IT FOR MY HOOD" is just sort of boring with some cheap production and lazy auto tune, the usual. The song is also too short to leave an impression. I guess outside of the context of the album it's an okay song. "PLEASE STOP CALLING ME GAY" is deep and bassy, and tells some funny stories. The production is cheap but fun to listen to. "She's So Nice" is catchy but doesn't have anything new for Pink Guy in terms of lyrics. The chorus for this song is addictive. "Please Stop Touching My Willy' is hilarious but way too short. It also doesn't feel like an interlude either. "Uber Pussy" is about a guy who gets pussy using Uber. A very straight forward song. The production has these weird Indian music samples. 

"セックス大好き" is strange to say the least but not strange in a good way. The production isn't something i've never heard before from Pink Guy and he decides to mix Japanese and English. The song is supposed to be a parody of sex and how it's described in Japanese culture. "Dumplings" is technically a song by 'PinkOmega' which is supposed to be some sort of spin-off of Pink Guy. The song is catchy with some hard hitting production and interesting lyrics but this song isn't all that funny or offensive. Filthy Frank said that PinkOmega is supposed to be more serious but if that's so then why is this song even on the album? This song is a great song on its own but with the rest of the album it doesn't fit in at all. 

"Meme Machine" is a good parody of casual internet visitors as it discusses what he does with memes. The song is both funny and true. The instrumental is cheap but it works for the song.

"Hand On My Gat" is energetic and fun to listen to. The lyrics are pretty simple but the production is cheap and catchy. "d i c c w e t t 1" is short but it feels more like an interlude than the last interlude. "FLEX LIKE DAVID ICKE" has the best instrumental on the album its these sounds flying around but also hard hitting trap instruments. The lyrics aren't really funny but they really go well with the samples used in the song. Funnily enough he sounds like 'Lil Wayne' on this song. This song is one of the best songs on the album along with "White Is Right". "HIGH SCHOOL BLINK193" isn't really funny but is an okay parody of 'Blink 182'. The song is short which is good. This song isn't bad it's just not nearly as good as anything else on the album. "Rice Balls" is catchy with a nice sample. But halfway through the song turns beautiful with some nice piano and Pink Guy's flow speeds up. The song isn't really offensive but it's funny and catchy. "Dora" is catchy, funny and ruins childhoods. He even says in this song that the song is inappropriate. "SMD" is energetic but it isn't offensive enough to be interesting. "Dog Festival Directions" is a soothing and funny song. The use of ukulele is key as it isn't too distracting from the story told in the song. 

"We Fall Again" is slow but forgettable however it does work with the previous track. The song messes up the pace of the album. "Club Banger 3000" made me laugh without even using any words. This song is a loud messy instrumental that works for the album. The song parodies popular hip hop music. "Help" has a calming instrumental with lyrics talking about Pink Guy's depression. This song is VERY offensive and works for the album. "Hentai" is a super catchy song about Pink Guy's love for hentai. The song starts off hard hitting but then it just changes into a ukulele song. The transition is pretty jarring. "Small Dick" is another hard hitting trap song. He just talks about different dick sizes but I really love how half way through he just starts talking about 'Black Lives Matter'. The songs sudden ending makes it hilarious. "Pink Life" has a nice instrumental but pretty inoffensive lyrics. It's not really that funny but I can see why it's in the album. "Another Earth" starts off sounding like it's going to be a spacious song but instead ends up being a song about hating popular music, particularly 'Young Thug'. The song has a nice instrumental with some funny and true lyrics. "I Will Get A Vasectomy" is predictable and sort of boring. The end of the song is funny I guess.

"Furr" is offensive and catchy. The song is about how he hates 'PETA' and how they judge how he treats animals. The song isn't really anything new. "Fried Noodles" has a nice instrumental and some funny lyrics and half way through it turns melodic only to turn back into offensive things. "Goofy's Trial" isn't really a song but is instead a spoken word track of a the trial for Goofy from the famous Disney franchise, murdering 25 children. The track tells an interesting story. The last song leaves me speechless every time I hear it.

I think this is a way better project than his debut as it's way more offensive and way more catchy.

Rating: 9/10 (yes seriously)