While
Larry Lovestein & the Velvet Revival
's album
You
looks and sounds like a lost lounge-jazz album from the 1970s, in reality it was an inspired one-off side project of rapper
Mac Miller
. Recorded in 2012,
marked the beginning of
Miller
's fruitful collaboration with Los Angeles producer/studio-wizard
Jon Brion
. Though
had garnered buzz for his wry, party-centric anthems prior to
, the EP marked the beginning of a creative transformation that found him experimenting with blending hip-hop with jazz, soul, and funk textures. Continuing his work with
Brion
,
further embraced this experimentation, earning accolades in the process for both 2018's
Swimming
and 2020's posthumously released
Circles
. Here, tracks like "Life Can Wait," "Love Affair," and "You" have a smokey, nightclub atmosphere, one that finds
playing the electric piano and crooning with a throaty, laid-back swagger. It's a loungey, conceptual vibe that merely hints at what was to come. ~ Matt Collar