To this day Man on the Moon is one of my favorite albums to drop in the 2000’s. His sound, his style, his delivery, just everything about his music was just so different (and we’d later find so far ahead) than anything else out at the time. It’s a sound that’s now been heavily bastardized by his peers and the next generation of artists. Just listen to Travis Scott, Uzi, and even Kanye and it’s hard to deny his influence. Being a pioneer of sorts has recently gone to his head though, with his recent projects Satellite Flight and Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven. Two albums that pushed his music beyond the point of recognition and were quite frankly, just bad. He promised a return to form with Passion, Pain, & Demon Slayin’ and I couldn’t wait to hear.
“Telling Satan to fuck off, hated the hand I was given
Tossed that shit back, like God must be kidding
And not for a nigga like me, not for the family”
Right off the back it greets us with new, but very familiar soundscapes. All the songs are full of those big spacey synths, infectious bounces, atmospheric vibes, and irresistible melodies we’ve come to expect from a Cudi album. “Rose Golden” might be my favorite song off Passion, Pain, & Demon Slayin’, it’s got that warm familiar feel of a MOTM cut but still manages to sound new and fresh. “Does It” has such hard hitting kicks paired with some slick synths and I dare you not to fucking bounce with “Surfin’.” All in all you can definitely tell Cudi reached back to work with some of his old collaborators and it’s a very welcome return because there’s some serious vibes on here that manage to capture what I loved about his sound so much to begin with, and still be new and fresh.
“Feelin’ awesome to be black, and I’m murkin’ all competition
Makin’ what I want and that’s a flex
Can’t do what you want, now ain’t that a bitch?
Slow up for no one when the show come
Magical feel in my palms”
Lyrically, Cudi has always been a competent rapper, not dropping off dense, complicated verses that you’d have to digest a few times before catching everything, but far from the mumble rappers of today. He has a unique mix of rapping/singing/melodies that creates some amazing sounding music. So, if you were looking for a return to form for the man on the moon, then Passion, Pain, & Demon Slayin’ is what you’ve been looking for. Oh, and he got not one, but two verses from Andre 3000 as if you needed more reason to throw this on ASAP.
Have you heard Passion, Pain, & Demon Slayin’? What’d you think about it? Was it a return to form for Kid Cudi? Let me know in the comments below and be sure to leave your rating for the album.
