No one will argue 5 Seconds Of Summer is high art, but it ultimately works more often than it doesn’t. And, perhaps most important of all, it feels authentic.

Though slightly dragging and formulaic at times, the melodies and arrangements are strong and memorable, stacking up against Mascis' previous solo releases. [Sep 2014, p.107]

The mood can at times feel oppressive, but is always rescued by either a devilishly great synth hook or Puciato's baleful vocals and heated lyrics. [Mar 2016, p.102]

The pristine third album from UK rhythm junkies Foals is a study in contrasts. [Mar 2013, p.8]

The resulting album is, at its best, ambitious and teeming with ideas and, at worst, one heck of a mish-mash of sounds.

These songs have enough lyrical detail to project some moving pictures onto you mind's eye. [Mar 2015, p.94]

It might sound formulaic, if it weren't so gorgeous. [Jun 2009, p.102]

Scattershot and immediate, with every track sounding as if it came off the top of his head. [Oct 2001, p.99]

Despite its relative palatability, compared with their earlier work, this is a hard album to like--and that's what makes it good. [Jan 2003, p.102]

Nobody creates teeth-rottingly sweet indie rock better than Denver's Dressy Bessy. [Sep 2003, p.102]

While at times a bit plodding, Sunshine's dizzying musical excursions become more exquisite with each listen. [Dec 2002, p.74]

There's a handful of tracks that should have been left on the cutting room floor to slim down the set, but Heart Attack is undoubtedly a step up for Man Overboard. [Jun 2013, p.91]

Guitarist Lindsey Troy's molten riffage and roaring voice-landing between Karen O and Brody Dalle--are paired perfectly with drummer Julie Edwards' wall-shaking bears on "Your Love's A Lie," which is as (not very) sensitive as this collections gets. [Nov 2013, p.88]

Kittenz is stocked with decadent electro-house grooves, slinky synth burbles and Ms. Kittin's glammy, deadpan vocals that sound like Madonna on Quaaludes. [Mar 2002, p.80]

"Do I Wanna Know?" and "R U Mine?" are a couple of satisfying stomps anchoring this collection of gold-tinted kiss-offs. [Oct 2013, p.82]

It's not as abrasive or confrontational as previous efforts, but Worship nevertheless shimmers with a defiantly bleak edge. [Jul 2012, p.90]

[In Kind undermines the mood of the entire album with a series of acrobatic vocal yelps.] It's a shame, because otherwise this is a record of near-perfect beauty. [Sep 2013, p.88]

Lonely will buy Hawthorne Heights a few more minutes beyond the 15 they've already received. Here's to hoping they'll use that time to think outside of the box a little more when they write LP3. [Mar 2006, p.119]

Madina Lake's return to the scene is reason enough to celebrate, it's just icing on the cake they've delivered their strongest album to date. [Sep 2011, p.107]

JXL's enthusiastic proficiency is largely consistent throughout. [Apr 2008, p.162]

This is Unwound's Kid A, in that they've turned their back on the rock in favor of something more atmospheric, but even more significantly, they've tossed out all the old recipes and made the future unpredictable. Problem is, they've fixed something that wasn't broken. [Jul 2001, p.85]

The Brazilian party inciters still diversify deftly on their fourth full-length, Planta. [Jul 2013, p.100]

The gloriously retro You Have No Idea is what the last Rapture album should of been [May 2008, p.146]

Black Hours [is] loaded with familiar falsetto swoops, cutting middle range and observation mixed with self-reflection. [Jul 2014, p.98]

The Nextwave Sessions lacks the pure aggression of Four’s best moments, but that’s not a slight; this release just showcases yet another side of the U.K.’s most interesting post-punk band.

Really, Surfer Blood always reminds us so much of the Pixies, and that isn't changing much with Tarot Classics. [Dec 2011, p.124]

Aside from a few dud lyrics--rhyming "ointment" with "appointment"--Wreckorder is a worthy debut. [Nov 2010, p.112]

The underwhelming title cut underscores the superiority of the first four Black Kids songs, but their transition from MySpace to major label is an overall success. [Sep 2008, p.162]