Michael in Bloomington, MN

As the first excavation of
Michael Jackson
's vaults,
Michael
carries the weight of expectation it cannot possibly bear to support. After
Jackson
split with
Quincy Jones
following 1987's
Bad
, he had a revolving door on his studio, letting in all major producers for a track or three, sometimes selecting these songs for a finished album, sometimes not.
rounds up ten of these leftovers, relying heavily on cuts he was tinkering with in the years after
Invincible
, but apart from cameos by
Akon
and
50 Cent
there's precious little here that sounds modern. Perhaps it's the heavy presence of
Teddy Riley
, but much of this recalls the cacophonic clutter of
Dangerous
, heavy on rhythms but not melody. Tellingly, the exceptions to the rule are the oldest tunes here -- "Behind the Mask" and "Much Too Soon," both dating back to
Thriller
, and "(I Like) The Way You Love Me," an outtake first aired on the 2004 box
The Ultimate Collection
and reworked somewhat extensively here. Much of this has likely been tweaked extensively to prep it for release, but it's impossible to discern exactly what overdubs were added after
's death, particularly because this so heavily recalls his last decade of released records, right down to the recurring theme of
MJ
's persecution, which sounds quite bizarre in the wake of his passing. That said,
winds up seeming almost respectful. At the very least, the album doesn't tarnish his legacy. [In August 2022,
's estate and Sony Music settled a lawsuit claiming the two parties violated false advertising laws by featuring a "Jackson impersonator" on
. A month earlier, the label pulled three disputed tracks from streaming versions of the album: "Breaking News," "Monster," and "Keep Your Head Up."] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine