Legendary artist Mac Miller’s latest posthumous album “Balloonerism” was released on Jan. 17 after its songs showed up in Miller’s collection of “lost albums,” albums that were not released to the public until recently.
Miller’s album is packed with deep, sentimental lyrics, showing some of the disturbing thoughts and experiences he had leading up to his final moments. Some of the songs within “Balloonerism” are quite unusual, containing a mixture of peculiar sounds and sentiments, which further emphasizes Miller’s knack for originality and individuality.
Through the songs “5 Dollar Pony Rides,” “Excelsior” and “Manakins,” Miller portrays profound messages about relationships, lost innocence and deep mental struggles. The songs provided genuine insight on hard topics many people wrestle with.
With lyrics like “why is heroism so close to heroin” in “Manakins” and “before the world tear apart imagination” from “Excelsior,” Miller brings heavy and sometimes unspoken concepts of inner struggles to light. This was new compared to what I already listen to: I found some songs to be laced with an excessive emotional intensity.
Miller’s album mentions his own feelings while confronting societal issues. Drugs, relationships and bewilderment are all things Miller himself struggled with.
With lyrics like “It feels like I’m dying” from “Manakins,” Miller sums up what a lot of people would feel under such unfortunate circumstances. Miller had the ability to connect with his audience through his meaningful songs and unique arrangements.
Though Miller’s intentions were to bring an artistically unique and profound set of songs, a line needs to be drawn between art and rubbish.
After listening to his song “Transformations,” I found myself wishing I could get those 3 minutes back. The song consists of muffled conversations and music from a children’s toy music set. Though it is meant to be artistic, I doubt that song would make it onto my playlist.
Despite a couple of the questionable stylistic choices, Miller definitely brings some enjoyable pieces to the table, such as “DJ’s Chord Organ (feat. SZA).” Specifically, this song gives listeners a lighter and more enjoyable way of experiencing the same profound ideas. His album is filled with the ups and downs of life, and despite its strangeness, every melody, lyric and beat stays true to that concept.
A good artist makes the listener feel something: anger, disgust, sadness, joy and everything in between. Miller brought that idea through songs that were honest and indisputably human. Though he is no longer with us, Miller will forever live through his music.
