The artists seem to have brought the best out of each other, and the result is much better than just hearing them go through the motions.

Thanks to Richie's confidently grown-up vocals and his consistently mature subject matter--here's a guy whose romantic timeline stretches past tonight to 'Forever and a Day,' as one track puts it--Just Go never sounds calculated or desperate.

The result is simple and sparse, but more satisfying than heavier-handed electronic projects.

Made to be played loud on a grand automobile sound system, "Origin Vol. I" is big fun.

The set is at once Slipknot's most ambitious and accessible outing to date, with a broad palette of sounds and textures that shift faster than Michael Phelps off the starting block.

The bottom end booms like a cannon, the dual guitars masterfully shriek and Halford's screeches tingle the spine.

A disjointed affair on first listen, "Security Screening" eventually reveals itself as the mirror image of main man Scott Herren's multiple musical personalities. [11 Feb 2006]

Elect the Dead, his first full-length solo effort, boasts the same kind of arty arrangements and cascading dynamics as SOAD's ouvre, a sign that while guitarist Daron Malakian is often considered the band's mad genius, Tankian's elastic, expressive vocals are as integral to its character.

There are a few instances where the songs manage to make the listener forget about the court appearances and remember Doherty's uniquely skewered way around a guitar line and lyric.

A stormy and engrossing sonic stew.

The entire record is a disquieting trip.

Musically and lyrically the album is thoughtful and mature.

Leans more toward conscious than commercial. [26 Nov 2005]

The breakdowns on songs like "Dee-Ree-Shee" and "You in Color" truly highlight each member's technical and dynamic abilities; the crescendos emphasize their quantum power to make great art as a group.

Buck keeps things relatively stripped down, embroidering vintage-sounding boom-bap beats with just enough detail to keep your ear engaged between his wordy verses, which he values far more than catchy choruses.

It comes across as unnecessarily tame.

Those looking for "Marquee Moon"-style guitar heroics will be disappointed.

Urban hardly rests on his laurels on Defying Gravity, trying some interesting new directions.

The prolific singer/songwriter has reacted to the licensing feast surrounding "Speak for Yourself" ("The OC," "So You Think You Can Dance," Verizon advertisements) with a stronger focus on song structure and melody on Ellipse.

A splendid set.

They still pen power-pop tunes so utterly irresistible—"Someone to Love," "This Better Be Good," "Strapped for Cash"—that they deserve to be every bit as ubiquitous at radio as the elements of the album's title. Oh, and they're still brilliant. [2 Apr 2007]

Looks at the Bird falls somewhere between chamber jazz and background music, a pleasant drift of different ideas that come in and out of focus like elements of a nice dream.

The fab five has more than made up for lost time with the deliriously buoyant God Bless the Go-Go's.

Although the album doesn't knock the ball out of the park on first listen, ultimately it reveals just enough cool ideas to keep things interesting.

An entertaining mishmash of off-kilter, raw and psychedelia-tinged rockers, jazz fusion-like instrumentals, gypsy-styled dance tracks and country hoedowns and pedal-steel twang.

From the hipster head-bobber 'Nothing to Worry About' to the melancholy closer 'Last Night,' the trio takes a minimalist approach to creating beats and accompaniments, making its simple voices more affecting and the subtle production all the more charming.

This one's stuffed with massive, flamboyant beats; overloud dirty-comic vocals; and all the usual lyrical stops.

The songs on Elephant Shell are a sensible progression from the Strokes-like hooks of earlier material, showing an increasing sophistication. As with before, the brilliance is in the brevity.

It picks up right where Bauhaus left off: a wet dream for original fans and a blast of recognition for the newly eye-lined.

Gillespie's lyrics will never win any Nobels, but the musical excitement generated here is impossible to deny.

Stone's soulful, sassy vocals are once again the centerpiece of another well-crafted effort.

Not every track is equally gut-busting, and a few, like the poseur reggae tune 'Ras Trent,' are made much funnier by the included video. But the Lonely Island has certainly found its bearings.

Repeated spins also find this wonderful, soul-influenced collection to be one of slow, flowering appeal that ultimately ranks among the Glasgow septet's most rewarding efforts.

There's no getting around the overall thematic pall, but Lennox surrounds every message with such beauty that one remains convinced that it's all going to be OK.

This Texas rock combo returns to form on The Century of Self, with producer Chris Coady stepping in for longtime collaborator Mike McCarthy.

The Spree... is generally a bit more streamlined in its approach. [23 Jun 2007]

Tunstall crushes the sophomore jinx under the stilleto heels of the white boots she wears on the album cover, delivering a confident and assured set that's fuller and a touch more electric than its predecessor.

A blur of primal guitar stomp wrapped in a menacing swirl of vintage organs and distorted vocals.

Longtime fans will find plenty to cherish on this very atmospheric and tuneful sortie.

Sadly, Beck's delivery on "The Vagabond" is a tad misguided; his spoken words on "Don't Be Light" are slightly better, but one wishes that he would simply go with the flow and not try so damn hard.

A very aware dance/pop atmospheric soundscape that is both electronically enhanced and orchestrally enriched.

As expected, there's plenty of ass-kicking country on Wilson's third album, but it's her softer side that sets it apart. [19 May 2007]

The pair's knack for excelling amid a range of styles and approaches is even more apparent on "The Understanding," which resists the temptation to overtly court the masses.

There's really no mainstream hip-hop record out there right now that's this diverse (touching on pop, R&B, and dance) and this much focused on producing meaningful, quality music.

Perfectly imperfect and totally fearless, this may well be McGraw's crowning achievement in a career already studded with success.

His ambitions and self-awareness have grown nearly as much as his net worth. [2 Dec 2006]

This is the throat-clutching Ministry that longtime fans have been waiting for: a grand mix of industrial rock and murder metal.

Its third and most ambitious release. 'Asleep' is notable for its beefed-up instrumentation and an overall darker tone than its predecessors.

The gem of this old school-flavored set is its low-key grooves that rely on thought-out storylines and not just sweet-talking jargon. [18 Feb 2006]

With this album, Costa comes defiantly into her own.

The My Morning Jacket frontman cackles, croons, wails, wallops and stomps through the band's fifth and latest great album.

Despite undeniable similarities to other bands that arrived at this party earlier, this album lacks pretension and self-importance. [21 Jan 2006]

The band seems oddly restrained and processed through much of the album's 12 numbers.

It all adds up to a collection that successfully sets Hanson apart from the current teen-pop phenomenon that it helped start -- at least from a creative perspective.

Not known as a songwriter, Adkins has an innate ability to make a song his own, as is the case with the seemingly autobiographical 'Happy to Be Here' and the family-first 'All I Ask for Anymore.'

Trail of Dead has made the album of its career.

Jordin Sparks gets a first effort that's all over the map--and works.

When this sixth CD opens with a cataclysm of "Transformers" noises, it signals a record that's a little more unapologetically electronic than their previous ones.

When "White Trash With Money" is good, it's very good. And when it's not so good, it's still OK. [15 Apr 2006]

It's still hard to tell if he's a bluesman in a soft-rocker's body or vice versa, and "Continuum" is the sound of him trying to figure it out too.

The real virtue of Lucky One, as on all of his previous efforts, is Malo's voice, a full, rich tenor that conveys dramatic emotional sweep without gratuitously emotive technique.

This eulogy is a celebration, and Big Whiskey is a dense, humid album that, befitting its New Orleans origins, shrewdly cuts its melancholy with exuberance and vice versa.

Six tracks are leftovers from the Brian Eno-produced "Vida" sessions, many of which make noticeable, if not exactly terrifying, departures from the band's swelling rockery.

It's the shimmering beauty of the title track, an overhaul of the Christine McVie-penned Fleetwood Mac tune, where Adams and Nelson's styles most seamlessly, and quite beautifully, mesh. [4 Nov 2006]

Fire Songs proves the Watson Twins are a strong songwriting team, and one that has earned its time in the spotlight.

A disc that flows with soulful vocals showcased in clean, back-to-the-real production settings

Legend's voice remains beyond reproach, but for a guy who's an oasis of style and soul in a sea of synthetic, robo-call R&B, at times it seems like he's playing catch-up.

Garage rock at its finest, messiest and most welcomingly insignificant.

There's little profundity here, but "The Geometrid" is undeniably a satisfying treat of bubbly, back-to-the-future escapism.

Snow Patrol handily manages the challenge of following up breakthrough album "Eyes Open" on A Hundred Million Suns.

To be sure, the majority of "Island" could be Pink Floyd in all but name only.

Occasional clunkers aside, the impassioned delivery and stripped-down G-funk grooves are still more potent than plenty of efforts by rappers half Cube's age.

Unexpected does boast a handful of shiny electro-R&B gems ("Hello Heartbreak," "We Break the Dawn") that make Williams' journey from church to club as enjoyable as it was inevitable.

A couple of tracks sound derivative, but for the most part fans of the duo will embrace this album as well as the twosome's maturing sound.

Chesney shows development here as a writer, and past success ensures him top-shelf material.

Overall it's rather tough to get a grip on what they're getting at.

It all adds up to a guilty pleasure for those old enough to remember the '80s.

Hiccups aside, there's something really brave and thoroughly punk rock about hearing her tackle Ma Rainey's 'Daddy Goodbye Blues.'

Anyone expecting something akin to a new Björk studio recording may not enjoy "Drawing Restraint 9," but taken at face value, the disc is a rewarding sidestep. [27 Aug 2005]

Outer South is a decently stocked serving of rambling, saloon-joint alt-country, but one that finds the freewheeling Oberst and band in need of a little focus.

Given Lamb's heady back catalogue, some may dismiss this album as digestible trip-pop free of synthetic intricacies and sonic meanderings.... [But] it's the first to harness 100% of their talent as a band.

Equal parts soul, funk, rock and blues, "can'tneverdidnothin'" continues to showcase the fiery, audacious style first heard on Nikka Costa's 2001 debut.

With its smooth melodies ("Just Right"), fresh beats ("Diamond Girl") and effortlessly suave lyrics ("Quicksand"), the album satisfies from beginning to end.

Fully realized and largely insane. [4 Nov 2006]

Although not as cohesive as Jean's "Carnival," "The Ecleftic" spins a compelling tale of a hip-hop superstar who defies convention.

Vedder effectively conjures the endless possibilities of the open road with sparse, never morose, tracks.

The utilization of American hip-hop scenarios in the context of the English slang is exactly what makes "Coming On Strong" such a unique listen.

The most potent and cohesive album of its career.

Key to the success of the disc is Krall's stretch on the keys, making this her strongest jazz outing.

"Word of Mouf" never quite meets the standard 'Cris set for himself with his debut.

The lack of big-name guests may make it hard to woo new fans, but those who preferred Paul's earlier work will be happy to hear he has returned home. [1 Oct 2005]

Maximo Park... safely explore new territory without being too obvious. [12 May 2007]

"Under the Covers" has just the right mix of reverence and fun to be enjoyable even on repeat listens. [22 Apr 2006]

Taking no risks, "Nightcrawler" shows little growth and makes one wish for the morning after.

Snow Patrol suddenly sounds like a cross between Goo Goo Dolls and Train.

Supergrass has gone from energetic, young and roughshod to energetic, veteran and polished.

With his raw, raspy baritone voice, he paints vivid, usually empathetic pictures within an instrumental context that is rife with refreshing live beats and sharply drawn guitar and keyboard lines.

With the roaring guitars and raucous attitude blaring from The Datsuns, it is tough not to crack a smile.