After more than 14 years, The Word—the gospel supergroup that launched the career of pedal-steel guitarist Robert Randolph—has released the long-awaited follow-up to its eponymous debut. Soul Food features the outfit’s trademark roof-raising, gospel-infused boogie—nine instrumentals and two with vocals. The uptempo jazz of “New Word Order” sets the record straight, as harmony guitars with a tick-tock beat are intertwined with Randolph’s sliding wails. The inspirational, multi-voiced chorus (including guest Amy Helm) and Randolph’s own two-line invocation contradict the downright menacing tone of “Come By Here.” He’s really in his element here, but steps out of the light on “When I See the Blood,” making way for Ruthie Foster’s rich, emotional vocal tones, beseeching listeners to believe in the Son of God. “Soul Food I” is a mellow and somber dirge relaying loss, while “Soul Food II” recalls the second line-style with rhythmic keyboard swells. John Medeski lays down dense Hammond on the gritty and sticky “Swamp Road,” while “Chocolate Cowboy” is a playful ditty with two guitars and keys all taking cues from the other. “The Highest” ends on a mellow-yet-rousing tone, leaving listeners with a feeling of being raised aloft.