Unleashed is a stripped-down, subdued affair, and it's this quality of veteran hip-hop quintet LA Symphony's rarities compilation that alternately makes and breaks the tracks therein. The snake-charming flute line of "Idle Time" is a good example of how the collective makes simplicity work, and given the willful complexity of the lyrics, provides a nice stability for some competent-if-not-incendiary turns on the mic.

The MCs are now a little more polished than they are here, where mixes are occasionally a bit instrument heavy (especially considering the sparseness of that side of the equation) and rhymes often start to come unhinged from the reductive beats, forcing unpleasant catch-up games. Tellingly, the worst efforts are a result of interlopers: the White Stripes-sampling "You Mash Up" and Posdus-featuring "Universal" are straight up abysmal.

Most of the time, though, Unleashed sees some underground magic in action, proving that studio gloss can be a needless distraction. The dirtier and dingier the track, the more LA Symphony transmit the sound of greatness discovering itself—standout "Friday Night Flavas" is the shining example on that count, with a monolithic, horny bass synth supporting almost awkward, delightfully idiosyncratic deliveries most would be too self-conscious to try. But the seeds of LA Symphony's informal charisma are there.