The Vaults

*** Jimi Hendrix, “Voodoo Soup.” MCA. Working on his fourth studio album when he died in 1970, hard-rocking Hendrix was reportedly considering a shift to more pensive, spiritual music. With that guideline, producer Alan Douglas sifted through those tapes and created his version of that unfinished album. Except for one minor instrumental, nothing new here, since tracks like “Angel” and “Drifting” have already been released on other posthumous albums. Still, an intriguing collection.

*

* 1/2 Thomas Dolby, “Thomas Dolby Retrospectacle. . . ,” Capitol. Credit Dolby with trying to expand the pop-synthesizer genre in the ‘80s with his off-the-wall sound, featuring muddled, Beatles-style vocals buried in quirky instrumentals. But, aside from the lovable lunacy of “She Blinded Me With Science,” none of what once seemed catchy still holds much interest.

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (essential).