MAC MILLER レコード& CD

Review: Originally released in 2016, just one year after his major label breakout GO:OD AM; the fourth LP from the late, great Mac Miller showcased a remarkable pivot from quick-witted, slightly offensive alternative hip-hop bangers to a more introspective and vulnerable style of neo-r&b. Written whilst in a relationship with pop megastar Ariana Grande (who also features on the record as well as being credited for the inspiration to the track 'Cinderella'), the project focuses on both external romantic love as well as love of the self and one's surroundings. With an impressive guestlist featuring Kendrick Lamar, Anderson .Paak and Ty Dolla Sign, and exuding Miller's first declarative foray into more nuanced, melodic and lush soundscapes, the album remains an outlier in an immensely expansive discography, which sadly still feels as if it was only just beginning to blossom before Miller's tragic and untimely passing.

Review: When rapper and multi-instrumentalist Mac Miller died of an accidental overdose in 2018, he left behind an unfinished two-part album project: "Swimming" (released last year) and "Circles", which has now landed on wax after getting a digital release earlier in 2020. It's a musically diverse and mostly introspective affair, with Miller shuffling between styles wearily and switching roles (singer-songwriter, rapper, multi-instrumentalist, beat-maker) seemingly at will. While such role hopping could have resulted in a sonic mess, the set sounds surprisingly coherent, not least because the thread running through it all is Miller's painful soul searching and well documented mental health issues. As a posthumous full stop to a life ended all too soon, "Circles" certainly hits home hard.