Mayer Hawthorne – “Cosmic Love” (Singles Going Steady)

Colin McGuire: Ahhhh, Mayer Hawthorne with that white-boy, blue-eyed soul. It’s tried and true, eh? What makes his blend of neo(ish) R&B interesting is his background as a DJ. That’s why this thing can’t just settle into its retrofitted feel and be on its way; instead, shots of futuristic sounds pierce through the production every now and then. So, yes. When the Star Trek effects float behind the iteration of the song’s title, “Cosmic Love”, it’s kitschy for all the right reasons. The only problem here is that aforementioned groove, which weirdly (and inexplicably) feels disjointed at times for no good reason. Is that on purpose? Or is that bad timing? Either way, Hawthorne’s signature falsetto makes this a blast of 2016 pop-soul gold and that clean guitar funks it up just enough to let you know the mind behind it has well-intentioned tastes. Plus, hey man: the video is sort of cute. It might be white-boy, blue-eyed soul in the modern day, but you’d be hard-pressed to find three mainstream American artists who are doing it as honestly as Mayer Hawthorne is doing it these days. And that counts for something. Right? [6/10]

Stephen Wyatt: In just over three minutes, Mayer Hawthorne attempts to obliterate soul music’s entire canon with its most trite imitation of Curtis Mayfield’s falsetto heard to date curiously titled “Cosmic Love”. Mayer asks his pursuant “If I had a dollar / For every dream of you and me/I’d buy myself a rocket / And shoot into your galaxy,” which invokes the spirit of Spinal Tap more than anything ever rendered by Pharrell or Prince. Of course, Christopher Guest and company would have a better sense of irony and far more engaging lyrics than enlisting Elon Musk to send a rocket into some poor woman’s galaxy. [1/10]

Chris Ingalls: Liquid soul. That’s the term that comes to mind when I hear this. Hawthorne’s the real deal, and this tribute to ’70s slow jams conjures up images of platform shoes and drug-fueled nights during the Ford Administration more effectively than anything I’ve heard in recent memory. Tight groove, irresistible, and it’s all over too soon. [8/10]

Pryor Stroud: The best lounge acts — those that slink, all curves, off the lid of a grand piano or dissolve the barrier between spectator and stage — succeed because they transplant the listener outside of the lounge itself. Although intended to launch its listener through the stratosphere, retro-soul enthusiast Mayer Hawthorne’s latest lounge-funk single is stationed immovably between four walls. It’s almost claustrophobic: the drifting laser beam atmospherics, radar-blip bass strut, and transparent orgasm-as-liftoff iconography all sound so desperately like the efforts of a singer straining to lift you into some rapturous orbit that, ultimately, nothing gets off the ground. [5/10]

Emmanuel Elone: It’s a decent soul tune with some nice nice guitar grooves and electronic effects in the back. The flashy sparkling sounds behind Hawthorne are done elegantly, and make the song truly feel as if it’s from another planet. I give him credit for making a track that’s completely soul; nowadays, artists seem to mix soul with other genres. Having said that, he could have been a bit more original and experimental, but it’s still an enjoyable listen. [6/10]

Maria Schurr: Maybe I’m just bitter because Jamie Lidell or Plan B never got the same recognition as Mayer Hawthorne, but this sounded like Jamiroquai at half-speed to me. 5/10

John Bergstrom: Hawthorne manages to do a good job of amalgamating his influences — Mayfield, Gaye, Leo Sayer– while nonetheless ending up with something that is less than the sum of its parts. Or less than any of its parts except maybe Sayer, but who’s really feeling nostalgic for him? [5/10]

Chad Miller: A pretty, downtempo track. Sci-fii-esque sounds add some personality to the track, but overall it seems to be a bit lacking in that department by virtue of playing it too safe. It has a sweet melody though. [7/10]

Dami Solebo: Inoffensive, middle of the road, pseudo funk with a forgettable chorus and melody. Mayer’s voice isn’t particularly notable, and the chorus is underwhelming. [5/10]

SCORE: 5.33