Amon Tobin and Joe "Doubleclick" Chapman have created some truly interesting sounds, but the end result is sadly just another trip-hop excursion with lame rapping over the top. [May 2009, p.123]

Floyd kick the shit out of 99 percent of the current post-rock crop, so you can't fault CBP for clinging to Picasso's claim that "Good artists copy; great artists steal." [Jun 2009, p.104]

Although we have a hard time following along with this one's theme, we do enjoy the music in spurts. [Jun 2009, p.103]

Psychedelic experimentalists Yeasayer add more beats than last time, but nothing that overpowers Khan's out-there mindset, stunning vocals and obvious talents. [May 2009, p.114]

Title withstanding, there's no rust on these guys. [May 2009, p.121]

Lady Sovereign celebrates her freedom from Def Jam not by leading with the (middle) finger, but instead by showing her vulnerability....[But after the first three tracks,] the old Lady Sov returns. [May 2009, p.123]

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]

'I Call Out Your name won't exactly smash the state, but it's a perfect little pop song. So are opening track, 'When I Died' and 'Now We Can See', where the band's return to gleefully subversive social commentary can't undermine their most infectious pop hook. [May 2009, p.110]

Teetering between genius and madness, Repo is a few hooks shjort of a successful fishing trip for experiemental music, left mostly with "experiemental" and not much in the way of traditionally defined "music." [Jun 2009, p.102]

This is an album of spontaneous originality and should be appreciated as such. [May 2009, p.114]

Though some tracks lull more than thrill, that seems to be the goal. [May 2009, p.114]

Fever Ray is most reminiscent of the Knife self-titled debut--which means it's merely fantastic rather than transcendent. [May 2009, p.114]

The man's always had his tender side: What makes this album different is the lack of input from his other sides. [May 2009, p.121]

On Bromst, Deacon's confidence shines through as he effortlessly combines extremes. [Apr 2009, p.142]

Don't worry about it being a chore; after devouring the album in its entirety almost a dozen times, we're still craving more. [May 2009, p.120]

The music is as ambitious as the plot, but more coherent. [May 2009, p.116]

They've given their songs a spine. Stark and deliberate, menageries of vocals ricochet irresistibly between reverb, piano and floor toms and stripped-down Americana. [Apr 2009, p.135]

I Blame You is where they make good on that promise, delivering a record as electrifying as their live show. [May 2009, p.122]

The duo's engaging, self-titled debut isn't quite as easy to parse as their moniker. [May 2009, p.123]

Hymn's soft-loud spectrum stretches uncommonly far, yielding rare rewards at each end. [May 2009, p.114]

There's a slickness to the sound as well-not to mention a pop sensibility, which could combine to give the band a shot in the Anglophobic US market. [May 2009, p.122]

God is an album perfect for daytime iPod consumption--and suitable for keeping the party bumping well after midnight. [Apr 2009, p.142]

Although a more varied use of the two drummers would be appreciated, the overall echoed effect with the cleaner production offers a complete, homogenized sound, which, when consumed en masse, makes for a killer album. [Jun 2009, p.105]

The net effect is unsettling distance, not pointed commentary. [Apor 2009, p.134]

There is some filler, particularily within the latter half, which despite the inspired riffage, isn't as memorable as the former. If Fight was a smidge more consistent, it would certainly be receiving a higher rating in this review. [Apr 2009, p.131]

Although short of a masterpiece, (a)spera is Mirah's most satisfying start-to-finish disc since her 2001 solo breakthrough. [Apr 2009, p.135]

The chops are there, the gimmck is there, and hopefully, the fanbase will be there, too. [Apr 2009, p.135]

Underneath The Owl is unquestionably the best album of the Gamblers' career thus far. [Apr 2009, p.132]