Mac Miller — Circles Review
It’s hard to explain what has made Mac Miller such a compelling artist to me. In many ways, it’s easy to write off as me finding him as an impressionable white, suburban teen. In other ways, the answer is a little more nuanced, as I have found something to draw from each of his projects. I still find myself listening to his discography, now spanning a decade or more and have thoroughly been surprised, impressed, and intrigued by his growth as an artist. Fast forward those ten years of growing to where we are now, and I feel as though Miller parted ways with his best project yet and an ultimately sobering and stirring companion to Swimming.
In the summer of 2013, I got a chance to see Mac Miller perform live with The Internet as a part of his Space Migration Tour. What began as a sour night of numerous openers, long wait times, and a rowdy crowd, ultimately paid off as Mac proceeded to perform renditions of some of his most beloved songs at the time with a backing band. This is ultimately the prototype for what Circles is as an album. There are elements of funk, jazz, lo-fi hip-hop, R&B, and good, old-fashioned Mac Miller braggadocio raps. While Swimming was an introspective album on heartbreak, depression, and coping, Circles is the up-shot of a hopeful future and moving past tragedy and pain. This is what makes the album at once such a beautiful but difficult listen.
Jon Brion, a composer of some wonderful soundtracks including Lady Bird and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, assisted in bringing the artist’s posthumous project to the world. It’s easy to find Brion’s influences from the loops on “Blue World” to the strings on “That’s On Me”. What brings these backing sonic elements to the foreground is the live production/backing band that I once found so compelling when Miller performed with The Internet. While some of these elements are retained from Swimming, others are newly founded. There are no straight-up hip-hop tracks. Instead, there are blends of genres that Miller has had elements of in each of his albums. This ultimately creates a unique soundscape that stands out in his discography and is simultaneously familiar, while also sounding fresh and captivating.
As I hinted, there are also lyrics within Circles that act as an antithesis to Swimming, described as yin and yang companions. While Swimming dealt with Miller’s breakup, moving forward with his life, and the struggles he had, Circles attempts to grapple with growing from these experiences. “I’ll let it go. I’ll cut the strings. Today I’m fine” he sings on “That’s On Me”, recalling his mistakes and working on reconciliation. In other places, Miller is more introspective, as he states “Ever since I can remember I’ve been keeping it together but I’m feeling strange”. Heartfelt and affecting lyrics in their own right, the added force of Miller’s passing adds an emotional weight that I certainly had trouble coping with during my first few listenings. Regardless, these emotional battles coupled with the intimate backing band and sounds create an impetus I’ve had trouble shaking. An impetus of self-discovery, self-reflection, and admitting one’s faults. A call-to-action to live the best life you can and care for those who have made you feel human. At the very least, I can only imagine that’s what Mac Miller would have wanted, and why he wanted the world to hear Circles.
