Review Summary: No more chicken sandwiches, I'll pay for the damages
Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven is weird. Really weird. Honestly it's one of the biggest musical anomalies to come out of a mainstream artist since Kid A and a massive 180° from Kid Cudi's early work. Once a psych-rap maestro, Cudi embraced his inner indie rock fan and produced one of the most jarring records of the past few years. A confusing harsh mix of buzz saw guitars and lo-fi drums. It's a painfully odd album, one that is definitely not for everyone and still a hard listen for even his most devoted fans. Critics disliked it, fans despised it (music critic Anthony Fantano famously gave it a 0/10) and even today, it's considered Cudi's worst album. It's time for a reevaluation.
So musically, what does Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven offer? Well, if you were expecting another neo-psychedelic dream rap album, turn away now. Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven is nothing like you would be expecting from Cudi. While Man on The Moon 1 and 2 had some guitar on a few songs and Cudi's side project WZRD was a full out alt rock release, Speedin' Bullet takes a page out of Kurt Cobain's book and dishes out 18 tracks of aggressive outsider grunge/punk. There's elements of avant garde here. The opening track 'Edge of The Earth/Post-Mortem Boredom' combines audio collage and incredibly lo-fi guitar playing to make a truly unique and surreal sound for Cudi. There's some remaints of his rap stylings on stand out track 'Adventures!' Which utilises a shuffling hip hop beat over fuzz guitars. Another interesting aspect of the record are the skits. For some reason, Cudi decided to recruit writer Mike Judge to write and voice out skits of his creations Beavis and Butthead listening to the record. It's so jarring to hear a gritty sour rock track which fades into the duo's trademark snickering. It's honestly so odd and I really can't wrap my head around it. The record is mostly a brutal course in lo-fi rock although there are a few mellow moments here. The aptly titled 'Handle with Care' is a gentle acoustic piece with Cudi crooning over some quite lovely finger picked guitar for example.
Lyrically, Speedin' Bullet 2 Heavy is Dark. Very dark. Cudi has always be upfront about his struggles with mental illness and this record puts those issues out there front and centre. There's some real anger and angst of this record. The confusing but harsh 'Judgemental Cu nt' shows Cudi at his angeriest and tracks 'Confused!' And especially 'Wedding Tux' and 'Embers' Have some of his darkest and most personal lyrics present. Thankfully, the lyrics help make up for some of the album's faults. It's a brave record and honestly It's quite inspiring to see someone go against what everyone was expecting to produce something so personal. Really the album plays like a personal collection of tapes that the world wasn't meant to hear, just Cudi, for him to play and mediate on. It's honest and up front, even if there are some real odd lines here and there (The immortal lines "No more chicken sandwiches, I'll pay for the damages" on 'Adventures!' Stand out).
Now, the album's flaws. Trust me, there are many. M A N Y. First off, Cudi's singing. Cudi himself is definitely more suited to rapping, and his singing voice ranges from strained and forced to painfully unpleasant in some places. I appreciate it maybe this was the intent to create a more personal, "real" work but sometimes it's incessantly hard on the ears. The guitar/drum sound is enjoyable but soon gets tiresome half way though the Album, with more than a few tracks sounding similar to each other.
So, is Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven good? Not really. Is it bad? Again, not really. It's a very middle of the road record I feel. It's an album With serious serious faults often which dog the album down but at the same time it's a uniquely honest and passionate LP with some heartwrenching and brutal lyrics. I really don't know what else to say about this album. It's so confusing and.... odd. Kid Cudi's grappling with avant garde is a real mixed bag. Some might say a failed experiment, some might say an experimental overlooked gem. Really, the record has left me 'Confused!'. But I can't say I didn't enjoy some of it
Standout tracks:
Confused!
Adventures
Handle With Care
Wedding Tux
Fuchsia Butterflies
Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven
Embers
Standout lyrics:
"These walls ain't talking back
Might as well finally paint them black, I'm out of ideas
The ceiling is all I have downward from here, I'm ripping apart" - Confused!
"While the maggots and vultures feast
I can't wait to be rotting meat" - Wedding Tux
"Pardon me babe, there are instructions I think that you should read
I'm a madman, I cause problems that I truly never mean
I'm damaged, I trust no one, sometimes I can be real mean
To a magnitude extreme, I'm sorry but-" - Handle With Care
