Bruce Hornsby [ tickets ]'s return to fronting a rock band is marred by a puzzling inconsistency. While he certainly wants to be seen as having expanded his vocabulary in the 23 years since "The Way It Is," Hornsby expends too much energy copping sonic tricks from hip-hop, Dave Matthews ("Space is the Place"), Radiohead ("Here We Are Again") and the guitar interplay that defined his onetime employer The Grateful Dead.

The weakest elements in Hornsby's arsenal are his lyrics and vocals, which have been placed front and center on "Levitate." There are no piano solos and only in a few instances--"Continents Drift" and the immensely enjoyable "In the Low Country"--does Hornsby's signature airiness come through. Celtic elements, beefy hip-hop drums and string arrangements are employed; a Randy Newman angularity with a pop hook makes "Paperboy" the album's gem. Curiously, the only drum credit is for Sonny Emory, who apparently is asked to often duplicate the locked-in drum-machine sound of Hornsby's early work with his band the Range.

Exercising his improvisational muscles with side projects that involved jazz and bluegrass musicians opened new doors for Hornsby. For some musicians, it would have been a case of getting something out of their systems. Instead it has given Hornsby a license to employ every idea that passes through his mind, consistency and coherency be damned.