A surprising reunion, The Secret Machines have successfully opened a new decade with Awake in the Brain Chamber, a comeback album that sounds right at home with their past releases while painting a way forward if the band continues to explore their rock cosmos.

The well-decorated singer-songwriter is well past the point of trying to prove anything. Yet, it’s refreshing to see Carlile embracing new approaches. And, of course, it’s beautifully and articulately rendered.

Thirstier is too melodic and hooky for a good heavy album and too heavy for a good pop album. But viewed as a hybrid album devoid of any specific genre, it’s a solid alchemy of Scott’s influences.

As an album from a constantly evolving musician, one who is often as confounding as he is exploratory, Foreverandevermore is approachable in its bleak outlook. Eno captures the sound most definitive to himself, evokes his best work in the process, and manages to weave something of a concept album into the mix, which makes it one of his most fulfilling albums of the new millennium.

“The View” is another near-solo track that legitimizes Lukas Nelson’s songwriting skills, as well as the understated savvy of Promise of the Real. Would that such numbers be the rule rather than the exception on the album? Or that the band quintet stretched out longer and more often than they do over the course of the twelve selections.

You don’t need to be a Ty Segall fan to appreciate the magic of Three Bells, the artist has transcended any persona attached to him to pen some of his best music to date.

Where once they relied on builds with big payouts, the soundscapes conjured on I Am Easy to Find harness restraint so effectively, instead of reveling in the melodies that champion the vocal riches over the intricate layering of guitars, Bryan Devendorf’s iconic rhythms and the space between everything. Even at 64 minutes, it’s a record that never feels bloated.

An album that rebrands its creator in a genuinely bold new way, something that is attempted often but is rarely this effective. It may not be his strongest outing, but it’s easily his most rousing.

There is little memorable about the songwriting of III; the lyrics are minimal and mostly abstract, but doesn’t really hurt the music. This isn’t an album for introspection or for contemplation of the songs’ meanings; it’s an album to crank up loud, bang some heads, and cause speeding tickets.

While the album boasts numerous contemporary jazz and innovative artists, it’s a mashup of many Black music styles. This writer gives the edge to R&B and African-tinged tunes but there’s so much to digest here that we may hear it a bit differently each time it plays.

With all its content, music, and otherwise, permeated with purposeful attention to detail and focused depth, Legacy Recordings’ Volume 7 matches the previous releases in this archive series, such as Volume 2 Live in Europe 1969.

His major shift in styles may not be for all of King’s fans, but it is hard to find much fault in his new, raw, soul-drenched efforts, as King clearly has struck a rich vein when it comes to his songwriting and recording style on Mood Swings.

Into The Blue introduces us to Frazer’s ambitions of redefining the modern soul landscape while reminding us he had a hand in shaping it.

The result is possibly his best solo album to date. A record that is so sprawling it takes several listens to finally soak in but is well worth the effort.

This album shows Rose’s ability both as a singer and a songwriter. She not only has a way with words, but also a way of delivering them for maximum impact on the listener. Another thing about this album is that it could fit the bill whether you want to dance or just sit and drink by yourself.

Cook’s artistic lyrics tend to become buried with the cascading roil around them, but the energy and blending/bleeding is part of The Yawpers appeal. The group’s enticing mix of folk, blues, noise, and good old fashion raw rock and roll is not new, but their twists, emotional singing, and willingness to distort musical conventions makes Human Question an engaging listen thr

Los Lobos puts out a dazzling love letter to their hometown of Los Angele with Native Sons, 13 songs initially sung by LA-based bands. The reinterpretations are as inspired as they are varied.

Another winner from Cartwright and the Memphis lineup of Reigning Sound as A Little More Time with Reigning Sound continues the outfit’s success story of delivering modern-day tweaks on retro rock and roll.

Rogers is rejuvenated, and full of ideas, and thankfully, it seems she is here to stay.

Earle has made a gorgeous tribute, every bit as good, maybe even a shade better than TOWNES.

The album keeps a lot of the fun experimental nature of their first couple of releases and blends it with a much more confident lyrical side that doesn’t shy away from personal revelations and vulnerability. As a result, it’s the perfect record to introduce the band to a much wider audience.

There’s an abiding sense of confident inspiration permeating the material as well as the musicianship, including most especially the worldly performances of Van Morrison himself.

Ghosts of Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett float among the slinky groove that could set out on the tide forever as it gorgeously gets the head bobbing and hips swaying around the only non-political track. Those lyrics are the exception though as the upbeat post-punk of “The Perilous Night” bubbles and bounces while sarcastically saying Amen to fascism on the rise, cars cutting down protesters and Red Square shining in the White House; it is a dance party at the end of the world with splashes of the Talking Heads mixed in.

Thundercat surfaces with another wholeheartedly relatable and sonically mesmerizing LP. The artist’s fifth studio LP, Distracted, is an organically stunning and stubbornly present new chapter to Thundercat’s autobiographical discography, one that is both a poetic snapshot of the artist’s perspective and another refreshing take on Thundercat’s singular sound.

Though Love Songs For Losers has many of the familiar markings of the band, the album finds the trio at their most experimental, diverse in subjects and sound – all while still sounding very much like a Lone Bellow album.

The real highlights for Woods this go around are the four instrumental efforts that each have a distinct vibe yet are linked spiritually. Rather than acting as placeholders they take root as distinct works.

“Closer I Get,” which features Oh, was co-written with Ivey and one that owes to the psychedelic trip. The sonics are less dense but the lyric is heavy. .... Act II: Mind Travel is mostly dark and perhaps most representative of the psilocybin effects. Analogies, metaphors and symbolism are rampant, albeit often subtle. .... Every trip, especially a six-day one like they took, has a distinct come down period. That’s the essence of Act III: Burn Whatever’s Left.

No wonder this eccentric ensemble continues to make albums like Valley of Abandoned Songs that reaffirm the notion great music is timeless.