Word hit the interweb last week that a new Nick Lowe album would arrive this coming September, the pub rock/pop rock veteran’s first album of new material since 2011’s That Old Magic and his seasonal sojourn on 2013’s Quality Street. The album cover for the to-be-released Indoor Safari lovingly recreates a mid-1960s stylized photo shoot, complete with hip fonts and a retro record design. But if you dip into the album’s proposed song order you might notice something familiar – nearly every song has already seen a public release via various EPs and extended singles that have come out over the past half decade. So this ‘new’ album really only contains just two genuinely new tracks, “Went To A Party” and “Jet Pac Boomerang.” The former is Nick doing his Cowboy Outfit era thing, a bit rockabilly in a 1980s sort of way. Los Straightjackets sound great on this track and the others that will appear on this LP, putting their considerable talents to work adding some welcome pep to Nick’s urbane performance. So, if truth be told, you can nick just about this whole album right now just by sorting through all these recent Nick and the Straightjacket EPs that have been coming out regularly. The only track you really have to wait for is the one with ‘boomerang’ in the title.

Don’t get me wrong – I’m not really complaining. The songs Nick has collected for this new record are quality Lowe’s for sure. Personally I love “Blue On Blue” and “A Quiet Place.” These two and all the other selections deserve to be featured on an official Nick Lowe long-player. You can advance order your copy on Nick’s Bandcamp and website. I know I will.