It's not quite as engaging as Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds, but in a pinch it will do.

It's certainly pretty, and definitely has its moments, but it simply lacks the vitality of past work.

Like her debut, Kala is somewhat inconsistent, for slightly different reasons. While there isn't the distraction of short tracks and skits to break the flow, some of the songs essentially do the same thing by shooting high and missing the mark.

I'll give them some credit for trying some new things, I only wish they would have taken things a step further.

The main problem haunting Denies The Day's Demise is the same one that holds back several past releases from Daedelus. While the release is cohesive and fairly entertaining, it could have used a bit more editing in terms of overall running length.

When they keep things a little more subtle, Silent Shout is outstanding, but in other places it's just sorta there.

There's a lot of great moments here, but is the least consistent album from the group in awhile.

It seems like in the process of tightening up their sound, the group also left out some of the more over-the-top qualities that inhabited their past releases. Keep Your Eyes Ahead sounds a lot more warm, but at the same time is more safe as well.

While the hooks are certainly great in places, it jumps from place to place so quickly that there's never anything for the ear and brain to go back to.

It doesn't travel any really adventurous ground, but it's a solid little entry for hot weather.

The release has a great sense of humor, and the entire thing is scattered with those weird little samples that he's so good at finding, but if you're looking for much more than that, you may find yourself disappointed.

All in all, the release probably would have worked better as an extended EP instead of nearly an hourlength rumination on one track and ideas that spawned from it.

Sure, he's great at using a 909, but he's already progressed past the music he's made with Closer, and much of the time it feels like falling back on old habit for lack of new ideas.

The album just doesn't have the innovation that previous albums from Hebden have shown.

In the end, it's not going to change the world, but it shows that the group is definitely expanding (in a good way) their sound from their early days.

Taking things up a small notch in terms of recording quality (medium-fi would probably be apt, as it's still a long shot from glossy), this is certainly a more cohesive release than their debut, with some absolutely killer songs mixed in with some rather middling ones.

In the end, Varcharz feels like an in-betweener album, where the duo hasn't quite figured out which direction they want to move in next.

The slight cracks that shone on Tallahassee are more visible, and unless you're a newbie to Mountain Goats lore, there probably won't be a whole lot new for you here.

There's still not really anyone out there creating music quite like this, but unfortunately The Blood Brothers have made better albums than this.

It's mostly inventive and catchy as hell.... That is, to say, if you don't mind the nearly ever-present vocals of Lafata.

While there are some excellent moments on La Incredible Aventura, it feels more like a transitional album than a fullfilled vision.

With ten songs running under forty minutes, the haphazard track order (with production quality going from super lo-fi to pristine) and dour feel ultimately make for a rather challenging listen.

In the end, there's a fair amount more musical variety on Fordlandia, but at the same time it doesn't hold quite the emotional resonance that past releases from Johannsson have had, largely because the music on the release feels much more obvious.

A letdown from the full-on intensity and imagination of their previous release.

There are moments where the two seem to sync up nicely and really unveil something beautiful and unique, but there are far too many other passages where the pairing doesn't quite seem to fully jel.

Dip is sort of an awkward sidestep in a new direction for Moffat, but it's still rewarding in places if you have the patience.

In the grand scheme of Orb albums, it lands as slightly better than their last effort Cydonia, but not nearly as good as classics like Orbus Terrarum.

Like the title suggests, this album is grand in many ways, but the sheen also wears off somewhat quickly at the same time.