Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager

            “What up, how is everyone doing? / You are now in the world I am ruining.”

These are the first two bars in "Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager." A sequel to last year’s "Man on the Moon: The End of Day," one thing to keep in mind going into this album is that Kid Cudi is not always a straight talker. He can be a blunt storyteller (such as on “Erase Me”) or a minimal lyricist with a focus on creating mood with an underlying message (“REVOFEV”). For this reason, MotMII will require more than one play-through to fully understand it.

Thankfully, deciphering the meaning of Cudi’s lyrics is pleasant thanks to some wonderful guest appearances and the welcome return of producers Emile, Plain Pat, and Dot da Genius (A.K.A. The guy who made “Day ‘N’ Nite”).

Like the last album, this one is made up of five arbitrarily divided “acts.” The aforementioned opening track “Scott Mescudi vs. The World” features shared production by No I.D., Emile, and The Smeezingtons (A.K.A. The guys who made B.o.B’s smash-hit “Nothin’ On You”) and features Cee-Lo Green (A.K.A. the guy who sang the super smash-hit “Crazy”). No I.D. also helps Plain Pat provide an appropriately battle drumming beat on the next track “REVOFEV” while Cudi raps about how rough life can get and calls for a revolution.

The revolution appears to come in the form of narcotics in the second act, where Cudi presents a series of darker and more ominous songs about lighting up and getting high. One of these songs features Mary J. Blige (coincidentally, her middle name is Jane. Mary Jane. Tee-hee) and the chapter overall is meant to chronicle the feelings and emotions one gets from regular drug use.

Act III provides relief with party-themed bangers and “Erase Me”, which is a relatively straightforward ballad featuring Kanye West. Act IV is called “The Transformation” and is comprised of songs that go from him rapping about making a room darker with a magic marker on the bleak “MANIAC” to the crooning “Mr. Rager”, where Cudi asks the title character about his travels.

This curiosity results in him forgetting about his troubles on “These Worries” and “The End” has him trading verses with GLC and Chip Tha Ripper about closing the door on people who betray their trust. The last three songs make up the final act. They start with the lonely moping wrist cutter that is “All Along” and end with “Trapped In My Mind,” where Cudi finds contentment with the reality he cannot wake from.

Overall, most of the songs described are listenable, with fewer duds this time around. However, the borderline abstract nature of Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager means that writing, let’s say, a review for it can produce migraines. It’s best not to think about the meaning too much and just take from the album what means the most to the listener. This is the reason Kid Cudi calls himself “Moon Man” – combining clarity and obscurity while managing to not make it confusing makes him a compelling force in alternative hip-hop.

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