Da Mayer

As your music-loving media maven I feel it is my duty to introduce you to some of my wonderful musician friends.  Oddly, the two I plan to feature first are friends in the same hip hop crew.  I believe in these men and their music, and I think you could too.


First up: Mayer Hawthorne

Me, Karla, Mayer

I have to say I am sort of a music snob.  If you discuss music with me, than you discover my general disdain for today's R & B genre.  To say I think it is terrible (with the exception of Neo-Soul) is an understatement.  The quality of the material within the songs and the lyrics has decreased exponentially, and the artists themselves cannot sing.  When people ask me why I feel this way I explain that I grew up listening to my parents music: Motown, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder etc.   I wish that quality of music would revive itself.  Generally those that disagree with my stance on today's R & B concede that the music of our parents generation is unquestionably better.  Fortunately, there are now a group of artists that have focused on soul, and one of them happens to be Karla's (my sister) close friend!

Yesterday Drew was in the New York Times, and needless to say we were beside ourselves with excitement.  If you are  unfamiliar with Mayer Hawtorne here is a taste of loveliness that your ears have been begging for.  Maybe So Maybe No,  is my favorite song.  The video is pretty sweet and I have to give Henry DiMaio some major credit for standing out above the pack:

North Coast Music Festival 9/5/10

You know when you listen to a CD that you love over and over, and finally see the band live and it is beyond disappointing? I hate that!  It leads one to feel they have been tricked by the sound engineer.  Well, I am happy to say you will NOT have this problem when you see Mayer Hawthorne.  Seriously.  I can say this with authority, because I have had the opportunity to see Mayer Hawthorne live three times within the last six months.  I have also seen them in a variety of venues: in a large theater with awful acoustics, at the North Coast Music Festival, and in an intimate club setting.  They rocked it every time, and I was never disappointed.  Quite the opposite, in fact.  Each time their show has gotten better and better.  The show is a fusion of hip hop, classic soul, and a little funk.  It is also a fun dance party guaranteed to have you leave with a smile on your face.

 One of my favorite aspects of the show is the eclectic crowd.  In a city as segregated as Chicago it is rare to see the races, ages, hipsters, hip hop heads interact.  Mayer Hawthorne is one of the rare catlysts that bring these groups together-that in itself should explain the magic of these performances.  

Finally, I would like to add Strange Arrangement is one of those CD's that you can listen to straight through on repeat.  Yes, it is in the ranks of "Nevermind" "College Dropout" "Rage Against the Machine" "Off the Wall" "Reasonable Doubt" "Are You Experienced?" and "Midnight Marauders." I'm sure you're thinking "Yeah, right you're just saying that because you know the dude."  To that I say: if you remotely like or love any of the aforementioned albums I implore you to check out Strange Arrangement.  It would behoove you to give it a try.  Trust me your ears and soul will dance.