WHO GETS FIRED FROM FIVE GUYS?:

Henshaw grew up with a pastor father whose voice can briefly be heard on the last track, "Joy." He's duly given props to gospel stars Kirk Franklin and Jonathan McReynolds in interviews, but he has also copped to a surprisingly eclectic set of pop, rock and jazz influences that surface on Untidy Soul and meld to stunning effect. The first song, "Thoughts & Prayers," turns the idea of gospel music on its head, delivering a powerful self-indictment rather than praise to God. "Bow my head, said my prayers/ I'm the good one, ain't I?/ Washed my hands of all my sins/ I'm the good guy, ain't I?" he asks himself. But he regretfully concludes that "there's blood on my hands after all" because he perhaps didn't offer more than the traditional "thoughts and prayers" when he could have.

On "Grow," a lush, souful song is built around the mature and measured sentiment of "If it hurts, baby/ Oh, we let it hurt, baby/ 'Cause it'll never work, no/ Unless we try, oh/ Together we'll grow." Henshaw neatly performs the trick of taking a song about toughing out the hard parts of a relationship and making it into an earworm (seriously, check out that shimmering chorus). Henshaw gets lighter and breezier on the bop "Chicken Wings," in which he proclaims, "The heart wants what it wants/ And what it wants is me, you and some chicken wings." He brings the joy and charisma of a "Happy"-era Pharrell to this goofy little number with a killer hook: "To fulfill this craving, don't need reservations." It's so uplifting and fun, you're sorry it's over in less than three minutes.

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