At a glance, the instrumentation on bassist Ben Allison’s The Stars Look Very Different Today—two guitars, bass, drums—brings to mind a rock band. (However, Allison does play acoustic bass.) The album’s title makes a rock reference; it comes from a lyric on David Bowie’s 1969 song “Space Oddity.” And the music often sounds like instrumental rock. But Allison (who has played with Lee Konitz, Larry Goldings, and Steven Bernstein) is primarily considered a jazz musician. More fundamentally, he's a composer who improvises and draws inspiration from various genres. The groove, ambiance, and drama of “Neutron Star” create a vibe that recalls '90s post-rock. “The Ballad of Joe Buck” moves at a slow, triple-meter pace as Brandon Seabrook spins out inventive banjo lines. “Swiss Cheese D,” which first appeared on 2001’s Riding the Nuclear Tiger, buzzes with energy. Allison and drummer Allison Miller drive the band as Seabrook and Steve Cardenas coax all sorts of unconventional tones out of their guitars. Stars closes with the free improvisation “Improvisus.”