*** Gomez, “Abandoned Shopping Trolley Hotline,” Virgin.

If the members of Gomez were a bunch of Buena Vista Social Club-like geezers from the South who’d spent the last 50 years playing together, we would smile in reverence and praise their volatile instrumental chemistry.

But these five youngsters from England have barely entered adulthood, and their youthful faces conceal an uncanny musical maturity, echoing decades of gruff folk tradition, weathered rhythm & blues and a dash of psychedelic experimentation. Their songs smell like a dusty attic and taste of whiskey.

The band’s third release is a collection of outtakes, rare B-sides and live radio performances put together to suggest what an extended, relaxed jam session at the Gomez household must sound like.

There’s no evolution to trace here, since the group had its trademark sound pretty much developed since its debut, 1998’s “Bring It On.” There are no revelations, either, except for a drumless, Mellotron-heavy version of “We Haven’t Turned Around,” perhaps the band’s most satisfying tune to date.

But the collection is as good an introduction as any to the magic of this most remarkable rock band. The first 50,000 copies include a five-track EP recorded in January, further proof that Gomez’s inspiration is not likely to dry up any time soon.

*

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), to four stars (excellent). The albums are already released unless otherwise noted.