Joni Mitchell performance recorded by Jimi Hendrix available 53 years later.

NEW ALBUMS

Liars, “The Apple Drop” (Mute): Where the past two albums by the Angus Andrewled experimental rock band were solo projects, “The Apple Drop” sees the songwriter back in the collaborative spirit that helped him produce his most notable work, like 2006’s “Drum’s Not Dead” and 2012’s “WIXIW.”

He hit the studio with jazz drummer Laurence Pike, multiinstrumentalist Cameron Deyell and lyricist Mary Pearson Andrew before stealing away to his home in Australia to produce the dizzying confluence of sounds on the 10th Liars album. The doomsday hum of “Sekwar” and the celestial guitars and drums of “Big Appetite” blur the line between what was recorded in a studio and what was created on a computer; this is part of what makes Liars’ music such an intriguing mind trip. In fact, Andrew said he strives to embrace new ways of making music with each album.

“Where once I perceived this journey as a straight line,” he said in a statement, “I’m increasingly realizing my trajectory is more akin to a spiral.” Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad, “JID 008: Brian Jackson” (Jazz Is Dead): The eighth installment of Younge and Shaheed Muhammad’s riveting series of collaborations with jazz greats sees them joined in the studio by Gil ScottHeron keyboardist, composer and arranger Brian Jackson.

The woodwindsoaked “Ethiopian Sunshower” is a jazz fusion masterpiece with distinctly postbop drumming. Jackson’s Rhodes keyboard on “Mars Walk ‘' evokes shades of the music he composed with the eightpiece Midnight Band that often accompanied ScottHeron.

Ultimately, “JID 008” is an overdue nod to a man who helped change the sound of jazz music from behind the scenes.

SONG OF THE MOMENT

Jamila Woods, “Fast Car”: For “Join the Ritual” — the third of four quarterly albums celebrating the 25th anniversary of storied Indiana independent label Jagjaguwar — Chicago singer, poet and activist Jamila Woods covers this timeless Tracy Chapman song.

It’s not easy to interpret the raw emotions of the classic about a couple in love, trying their best to build a life in tough times, but Woods’ treatment is beautifully reserved and mindful of the universal themes of “Fast Car.” She approaches it with a humble awareness that the story is one that still lives on in millions of people.

LOCAL PICK

Fake Fruit, “I Am the Car” (Fire Talk): When I first heard “No Mutuals,” the lead single to the Oakland band’s excellent selftitled debut album released in March on Sonny Smith’s Rocks in Your

Closed Sessions Singer and poet Jamila Woods has recorded a new version of Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car.”