Most of the songs are brutal, chugga-chugga workouts, with Phil Labonte barking like a roid-raging Masshole spoiling for a fight while the band riffs away behind him. [Nov 2010, p.108]

Punchier production and more energetic songwriting point The North in the right direction. [Oct 2012, p.92]

Owen leave behind the emotional outbursts of his collaborations with his brother Tim in Cap'n Jazz, Joan Of Arc and Owls, but keep a quieter, suburban rage alive on his sixth album. [Dec 2011, p.121]

Monuments to an Elegy is a stunning return to form, offering concise songs that plumb the vocalist/guitarist's stock in trade while offering new sonic veneers. [Jan 2015, p.93]

The Orchard is a significantly more melancholy collection of songs. But melancholy seems to suit Ra Ra Riot, especially since they don't get too caught up in its gloom. [Sep 2010, p.113]

One-man synth-pop act Ernest Greene's singing lacks firm consonants and dribbles out unintelligibly most of the time over the most compelling of his stripped-down electronic compositions. [Aug 2011, p.122]

Gibbard isn't reinventing himself with Former Lives, but after a decade and a half in the business, he proves he's still got a lot to say. [Nov 2012, p.88]

How they were able to construct an entire multi-layered universe (sonically, lyrically and with narration!) for listeners to get lost in-while writing some of the strongest and catchiest songs of their career-is anyone's guess. For the cookie-cutter bands and haters out there, that's what we call sweet revenge.

A laid-back meshing of chilled hip hop, late-night jazz and upscale dancefloor grooves. [Aug 2002, p.84]

The album doesn't stary too far from what made MUTEMATH such an enjoyable listen, but it's nuances cement Armistice as the band's best work to date. [Sep 2009, p.99]

Once you assimilate to his timbre, the earworm hooks and easygoing drive of Giant Orange will be a welcome salve to the wounded spirit. [Mar 2012, p.94]

Falling Off The Lavender Bridge is a collection of alt-country songs that alternate between darkly funny and deathly serious, cleverly coy and crappily dull. [Mar 2008, p.140]

The simple, muscular rock and folk are matched in directness by lyrics that keep returning to troubled relationships, and risk the occasional awkward line to make their point. [May 2009, p.121]

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]

K-os occasionally veers into icky soft-pop territory on Atlantis, but give him props for mostly imagining where hip-hop might go in the future rather than recycling its past. [Mar 2007, p.144]

With more focus on Knopf's reedy voice, acoustic guitar and piano/synth progressions, Intuit sets itself apart from Knopf's day job with aplomb. [Sep 2009, p.108]

Fun with out being frivolous or dumb, the album lives up to pre-release hype and solidifies Kid Sister as the fiercest new hip-hop female on the block. [Feb 2009, p.107]

While This Addiction might not be perfect, it's a more than respectable entry into the band's already sizable canon, proving that though they may be in that rarified group of punk-rock lifers, Alkaline Trio aren't done evolving yet. [Mar 2010, p.89]

Though it unfortunately eschews the dynamic emotive crests and space of past efforts in favor of MO's intensely urgent intent, its results make it a completely worthy addition to an already strong alt-rock catalog. [May 2014, p.89]

Unfortunately, the tinny stutters and retro keyboards... drag when they're not amped up on desire. [Dec 2003, p.158]

Admittedly, Emblems begins to drag towards the end, but the album succeeds on a visceral level. [Jul 2004, p.136]

Jet storm the new rock pack with the diverse appeal and catchy compositions. [Nov 2003, p.112]

The Most Serene Republic play it incredibly safe while maintaining thier baroque-rock rep. [Aug 2009, p.111]

Givers have created a debut that will surely set them atop the indie-rock world, if not only for their strict adherence to trying everything possible and succeeding gloriously at it all.

It's impossible not to throw up the horns, bang the head and get caught up in the heavenly haze of 13.

By creating an homage to youthful, timeless pop-punk--New Found Glory sound revitalized and relevant. [Nov 2011, p.91]

It’s a big, shiny, shamelessly indulgent affair played by talented musicians, and when it comes down to it, it’s just a lot of fun.

If you’ve long hoped for a more mainstream direction and always wanted to hear just how sweet a singer Krauss is, Bitter Rivals could be your favorite Sleigh Bells yet. But if you’re wishing they could’ve evolved in a way that didn’t involve quite so many ballads and especially not at the expense of what made Sleigh Bells so great, this might not be as essential as you presumed it would be.