Starcrawler, courtesy.

This week we turn down the tempo a bit with Hamish Anderson’s blues rock, Kokoroko’s Afrobeat jazz and jam band Worthy of Dawn. But don’t worry, we also have goth psychobilly from Inca Babies, psychedelic rock from Thus Love, ’80s-influenced pop by Jordan Duffy and alt-rock from Starcrawler.

Hamish Anderson, “Brighter Days” — Do you like ’70s blues rock? What am I saying, of course you do! If there’s a wide variety of people together, blues rock from the ’70s is one of the go-to musical selections that will make everyone happy. Well good news, Hamish Anderson’s “Brighter Days” wouldn’t sound out of place 50 years ago. Props to the Melbourne, Australia native for keeping the old ways alive.

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Jordan Duffy, “Nights Like These” — Now let’s go from the ’70s to the ’80s. I’m a sucker for an unnecessary saxophone solo; “Careless Whisper” is one of my favorite songs and “Baker Street” never ceases to put a smile on my face. So when “Nights Like These” opened with a sax solo, I was already on board. Then I realized the video was an homage to ’80s horror movies to go with the sax and the synths. But, somehow, the best part is still Jordan Duffy’s vocals. She can absolutely sing.

Kokoroko featuring Azekel, “Three Piece Suit” — Kokoroko is a contemporary jazz collective out of London, and Azekel is a fellow U.K.-based artist from Nigeria. Their musical powers combine to form “Three Piece Suit,” a song with influences from Afrobeat to jazz, funk to synth-pop, and it has a throwback feel so timeless that I can’t even say for sure what specific era it’s a throwback to. It’s just a fantastic song all around.

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Thus Love, “All Pleasure” — While “All Pleasure” may be the third single from Thus Love’s second album, the band says it’s the first song it ever wrote collaboratively as a quartet. It’s a little amazing that this song is where they started rather than the result of years of practice. A bit more mellow than the album’s first single, “Birthday Song,” it’s a surreal, borderline psychedelic song that plays into their strengths incredibly well.

Inca Babies, “Spacewalk” — English band Inca Babies brings us a combination of psychobilly, surf punk and Bauhaus-style goth rock, which is a list of things I never suspected would work together but really, really does. The authenticity of the sound comes from Inca Babies’ first run as a band from 1982 to 1988, when those sounds were new and fresh. Then, like all good punk bands, they broke up… until 2007, when frontman Harry Stafford revived it with a new lineup. But that new lineup sure does a good job of keeping the original spirit.

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Worthy of Dawn, “My Shelter” — If you’ve read any of my previous turns at Tuesday Tracks, you may notice a difference this week: There’s no metal. Usually I spotlight the face-meltingest of rising bands as a public service to my fellow fans of aural rage. But this week while reviewing songs, I had the flu, complete with sleep deprivation and a splitting headache, so I couldn’t stand it. The other side of that coin is that I’m obligated to include “My Shelter,” a song with the exact right sound and vibe to make my headache go away for a few glorious minutes. That right there is the sign of a really great song.

Starcrawler, “Learn to Say Goodbye” — I couldn’t go a whole week without including at least one straight-up rock song. With a sound nestled in that era in the late ’80s, when glam was becoming grunge, Starcrawler shows its experience with a track that’s simultaneously raw and polished. Singer Arrow de Wilde is 6-foot-3, which is also in their favor; tall people are inherently better, that’s just science. This is Starcrawler’s second appearance in Tuesday Tracks.

Danny’s pick: I really had to split hairs to pick a favorite. This entire list could have been the choice in any other week. But in the end, the honor goes to Starcrawler. Stradling a line somewhere between a less electronic Garbage and a less grungy Hole, it’s a great young band with an even brighter future despite four albums already under its belt.

Follow publisher Daniel J. Willis at @bayareadata.press on BlueSky.