Attention to sonic details and layers of instrumental touches, combined with the harmonious vocal connection, deft songwriting, and easy-rolling charm, makes Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free Bonny Light Horseman’s most complete album to date and a joy to experience.

This terrific project has its shining moments, with a few missteps along the way, yet it will likely go down as a winner. This aggregation of talent doesn’t come along often.

To be sure, those moments on Sam’s Place that sound like vintage Little Feat are fleeting. But there’s no denying how this unit’s bond retains an authentic feel for numbers like those of the inimitable blues poet Willie Dixon.

The band – still comprised of all three founding members – singer/guitarist Janovitz, bassist Chris Colbourn, and drummer Tom Maginnis – approach this record with the same relaxed, effortless vibe that made the trio such a consistently great act throughout the 1990s. The harmonies on “New Girl Singing” and the effortlessly cool vocals on “Recipes” and “Come Closer” sound like a band that have spent decades working together and anticipating where the song goes next.

For many, Thompson is an acquired taste. There’s little, if any, middle ground. So, while this may not attract new fans, it will more than satisfy the legions of those who stay attuned to his every move. It’s as solid as any of his recordings.

Ghostface Killah’s Set The Tone is a sprawling album with risks that give some rewards and moments that uplift the whole album. While the LP dips into songs that sound forced, the authentic tracks make up for the lost time. He shows that he can keep up with any of the modern rulers of the genre. His rapping abilities and booming delivery have matured like fine wine.

The album is a darkly sweet exploration of heavy themes like cancer, death, and motherhood, delivered with a newfound confidence and maturity. On News of the Universe, La Luz has crafted an album that sounds timeless yet fresh, pushing their boundaries while maintaining the hypnotic beauty that defines their music.

By design, Lives Outgrown does not have the danceable grooves of Portishead’s music, but fans of the more experimental aspects of Gibbons’s former band should love the album. The orchestral compositions and atmospheric tension paint bleak portraits well-suited for Gibbons’s somber voice. That voice is as good as ever, able to wring drama from each utterance of her poetic tales of loss.

In terms of tone, production, and energy, Neon Pill feels connected to Social Cues. And like that album, there is plenty to enjoy, even without the powerful guitars and frenzied vocals. This softer Cage still has the grooves and melodies to keep things interesting while the band gets more comfortable.

The collection of songs is ambitious – at times brilliant and other times tedious. But you can’t accuse The Avett Brothers of simply rerecording the same album over and over again.

Throughout Rhumba Country, Pokey LaFarge broadens his sound, effortlessly bringing in world influences to help accentuate his retro Americana core, positively crafting one of the most enjoyable efforts of his long career.

Funeral for Justice finds the band flying high while creating songs they believe passionately in, resulting in the strongest album of Mdou Moctar’s career.

We have two different records. Disc One blurs genres, while impassioned jazz rules Disc Two. As for dancing in the literal sense, those moments come infrequently in this massive (Kamasi knows no other way) project.

The Lemon Twigs creates a meditative bliss on A Dream Is All We Know. Whether they’re making pop tunes that evoke the serenity of cherry blossom trees or bluesy rock that fills the room with heavy riffs, this project has a specific calmness that found a home in Beatles-inspired pop.

Crockett has a potpourri of songs here, from the relatively simple country ditties, to arresting narratives, to those filled with symbolism that demand multiple listens. He remains squarely in the front row of today’s best writers.

Moving in a lot of directions, That Delicious Vice proves that Kid Congo & The Pink Monkey Birds are willing to experiment with sound and scope to deliver their tunes, even if not all their outings are successful.

The first half of the Wiggle Your Fingers is fine if not particularly notable, but things improve significantly on the back half.

Over the course of more than a dozen records, the Old 97’s have experimented a bit and tempered their sound from time to time, but American Primitive is a return to their Clash meets Cash roots.

For all the celebrated figures accompanying him, Ian makes Fiction his show, one that’s as (thankfully) understated as it is penetrating.

Every tune here would be a candidate for a film score, much of the moody and dramatic material conducive to Hitchcock. .... The Umbria Jazz Orchestra, with its blend of brass and woodwinds versus the heavy string emphasis of the Brussels Philharmonic, adds completely different sonic textures. Ringing guitar notes reverberate and echo with more authority as the ensemble extends them. The blending sounds are captivating, and Frisell’s trio mates also seem more at the forefront.

Simple on the surface, basically a country blues effort, the album has a sneaky quality. It will grow on you after a few listens.

Tarantula Heart is messier than most Melvins albums, and it doesn’t have as many great hooks as fans are used to. While it doesn’t hold up to the band’s best albums, there’s plenty to enjoy for those who like the band’s quirkier side.

Sun Without The Heat is an engaging musical journey through Leyla McCalla and her band’s vast influences as the impressive artist keeps crafting engaging music for the body and mind.

On Up On Gravity Hill, METZ” sound evolves as the trio explores new sonic pastures while keeping their core intact.

Pernice, rightfully lauded for his classic pop songwriting and arrangements, has been compared to Burt Bacharach over the years. You can hear that influence in songs like “What We Had” and “December In Her Eyes,” two tracks that sound a bit dated and out of place on an otherwise great return for Pernice and his band.

Those dulcet tones of Knopfler’s voice remain immaculately intact. Now 74, every aspect of his artistry remains at its consistently high quality. As with the past few releases, Knopfler waxes mostly nostalgic here again on One Deep River.

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.

The eight tracks produced by Tucker Martine (Sufjan Stevens, The Decemberists, My Morning Jacket) in Portland, OR include some music that, while it is legitimately based on a formidable tradition, nonetheless doesn’t sound quite so personal or powerful as the best Parr performs elsewhere here (or on the pinnacles of his past like his eponymous album of 2019). .... Fortunately, the moody likes of “Bear Head Lake,” call to mind Charlie Parr at his most scintillating on 2017’s Dog.