Makaya Mccraven - Off The Record (2025)

Off the Record is Makaya McCraven's first album since 2022's In These Times. This double-length album compiles four EPs, all with different lineups. The core recordings were cut between 2015 and 2025, then subjected to McCraven's trademark "beat science" mix treatment, combining jazz, hip-hop, electronics, funk, and psychedelia.

First up is The People's Mixtape. The original recordings are drawn from a 2025 concert in Brooklyn celebrating the tenth anniversary of In the Moment. His personnel included vibraphonist Joel Ross, bassist Junius Paul, trumpeter Marquis Hill, and SML electronicist Jeremiah Chiu. Opener "Choo Choo" mixes layered drum funk with assorted percussion and electronics creating a kind go-go mantra that shifts emphasis on "The Beat Up." Ross establishes the pulse and Paul roils with McCraven underneath. Hill joins 90 seconds in and adds a melodic vamp to the funky edge. "What a Life" and "Lake Shore Drive Five" are more abstract amid backmasking, dreamy psych production, loads of reverb and ghostly melodies that slip through the sonic ether. Techno Logic was cut with trombonist Theon Cross and cornetist/electronicist Ben Lamar Gay. Its tracks were recorded at live sessions in London (2017), Berlin (2024), and New York (2025). Standouts include the swinging, vamp-driven jazz-funk mutation "Boom Bapped" and the inside-out NOLA second-line funk in "Prime."

Disc two commences with Hidden Out. Its source material was compiled from a live 2017 residency session at Chicago's Hideout. McCraven played improvisational gigs with a revolving cast. Here it's bassist Junius Paul, guitarist Jeff Parker, and SML co-leader, alto saxophonist Josh Johnson. Parker plays bluesy post-bop that swerves toward flamenco as Paul's rumbling bass and McCraven's snare and kickdrum propel the exploration. "Dark Park," with its hoary bassline and wah-wah guitar, unveils sinister, rockist jazz-funk akin to Herbie Hancock's Thrust. "Awaze" is in 6/8 waltz time and holds a hypnotic bassline, pillowy guitars, and Johnson's sax playing a folk melody.

Pop Up Shop was cut during McCraven's 2015 debut performance in Los Angeles at the Delmonte Speakeasy. This five-track set was completely improvised though it's hard to tell. Accompanying the drummer were Parker, bassist Benjamin J. Shepherd, and vibraphonist Justefan (Justin Thomas). McCraven's post-production editing and mixing make "Venice" a propulsive psych jam with syncopated and broken beats. "Imafan," by contrast, is introduced by rolling tom-toms and kickdrum as vibes play a lithe vamp in the backdrop. When the remainder of the band enters, it becomes a breezy, summery jazz groover with a killer solo by Thomas. Closer "Sweet Stuff" showcases twinned vibes and guitars that tease a riff and Shepherd responds. McCraven enters with handclap loops and his shuffling snare and hi-hat. Over six-and-a-half minutes, it changes shape without losing its center, slipping in small melodic feints, sweet guitar accents, and, after Parker's striking solo, transmutes into full-on improvised jazz fusion. While each of these EPs stand on their own in quality, they create a rhythm orgy that is wildly musical and presented as a near symbiotic whole when combined.~Off the Record Review by Thom Jurek