Broken Bells return this week with “We’re Not In Orbit Yet.” They’ve announced a new LP Into the Blue, it will be their first record since 2014’s After The Disco.

A new album by Drake, and not just a single? It seems Drake has released his seventh studio album, Honestly, Nevermind. He’s calling it an experimental dance LP dedicated to the late fashion designer, Virgil Abloh. “It’s all good if you don’t get it yet. That’s what we do,” Drake said on Instagram Live. “We wait for you to catch up. We caught up already. On to the next.” So, yeah, I was a little caught off guard after my first listen, but there were some solid takeaways. “Tie That Binds” has this incredible jazz guitar work on it, which ends with a guitar solo, and a freeform jam. I give Drake credit for trying something new, even though a lot of these songs sound the same. If you have the time you can skim through and find the songs that connect with you, and you’ll come away with some new faves. That’s the great part about what Drake has attempted.

We haven’t heard from Level 42 in a long while, and I can say I’ve never heard the single, “The Chinese Way.” This week they have released Singles & Remixes, a 44-song journey through their career and extensive singles collection. There is a lot of listening here, but I’m excited at the prospect of hearing past records that I missed.

Pearl Jam release a deluxe version of their latest double studio album, Gigaton. It’s a Tour Edition, complete with an 11-song companion disc that houses a nice set of live tunes from the same record. I really like this concept, for me, it’s like a gateway into their newest batch of tunes.

Dawes does their best Phish impersonation on “Ghost In The Machine.” Honestly, this band runs the gamut of styles and they play each with such care. I hear some Steely Dan and Grateful Dead as well, and this piano solo that happens near the 4:15 mark is a straight banger, that can’t be missed.

Snail Mail has been on my #RADAR, but this week they released one of those interesting Spotify singles, wherein the band challenges themselves with a cover song that’s out of their league. ‘”Feeling Like I Do” by, the 90’s powerpop group, Superdrag turns out to be right up their alley and Lindsey Jordan and company knock this one out of the park. Of the remake, Jordan said, “It’s been really cool getting to cover ‘Feeling Like I Do’ by Superdrag because I love it, and I’ve loved it for a while.” This is one of the best covers I’ve heard in a while and it gets the “Track of the Week” award.

Voxtrot has released two new singles, “Fifteen Minutes” and “Kindergarten,” from a forthcoming B-sides compilation called Cut from the Stone: Rarities & B-Sides. Both songs sound strong and I can’t wait to unearth the rest.

What wouldn’t you do in the “Back Of A Cab?” Paul Dally finds allegory, and salvation, and is delivered from evil in the back of this cab. Hell, he even talks about his baby there, and babies being born, for that matter. There’s something really simple and endearing about this song, and with each listen, you seem to hear more.

Your Jazz Cut Of The Week is “Good Times Ahead” by Kai Fenchel, Andreas Suttner, and that guy we heard a few weeks back, Wolfgang Lackerschmid. You can feel the foreshadowing merriment as they bring the happy, quickly to your door. Clocking in at just under two minutes, if you blink, you might just miss it!

Put your email in da box and click: “Create Subscription!”