While lyrically his songs are top-drawer, Thompson's guitar prowess is also noteworthy. [13 Aug 2005]

Morissette's superb lyrics leave you cheering for her--and assured that she's going to be just fine.

It's a pleasingly indulgent collection of songs, stories and detours that will be something of a treasure for longtime fans and packs at least a dozen treats for relative newbies.

The acronym that forms the title of their latest stands for "The Energy Never Dies," and they more than make good on that promise, blasting through 15 high-powered rave-rap jams that rarely lack for melodic hooks or rhythmic thrust.

Features some of the group's most focused and seductive work ever.

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.

The threesome is best when trading verses and flaunting its ample talent on strummy singalongs like 'Just About Time.'

Ghost sounds so together that even its nods to jazz fusion and prog rock sound utterly convincing.

Always a risk-taker, he remains fearless in his choice of material, evident here on sweeping, observant fare like "Drugs or Jesus" and the ultimately redemptive "Kill Myself."

On Free at Last, he demonstrates that being forced to cool his heels since 2003 hasn't dulled the rough edges of his appealingly hectic flow.

If it all seems messy, it isn't. GCH sounds like an American utopia, where everyone coexists joyfully and thrives on the diversity.

The chaotic electronic density of U2's last few efforts has been replaced by sticky, bite-size tunes -- sporting candy-sweet choruses that are often underlined by unabashed words of love.

Busted Stuff is marked by luxuriously long tracks that maximize the skills of the band.

Sounds like something carved out of the earth, a soulful howl of Hendrixian guitars and Zeppelin stomp.

Each of Ladd's compositions are moody yet ethereal.

On his first release since reuniting the original Joe Jackson Band in 2004, Jackson is at the top of his game as a writer, singer and player.

Some of these songs about life, love, family, friends, and the world seem subtly laced with lyrics inspired by the terrorist attacks, which helps make Are You Passionate? seem not only like a great next step in Young's career but also the best album he could have issued right now.

Breathtaking and beautiful, as well as haunting and bleak...

With accompaniment as varied as vocals from Ollabelle and Brazilian percussion from Mauro Refosco, White still keeps us off balance with rich, unpredictable textures ("Diamonds to Coal") that convey lost-in-the-backwoods disorientation ("Counting Numbers in the Air").

The group aims to shed the "freak folk" misnomer once and for all with a gorgeous collection of rustic folk rock.

By scaling warm guitar lines, keen melodies, and a valuable sense of history, these Sparks continue to fly.

Raw and emotional.

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.

His reports here from the streets ('Me and My Goons'), the boudoir ('Spend the Night') and the hospital room ('Family Straight') sizzle with a stripped-down immediacy that makes good on the album's title; few MCs seem as committed to a warts-and-all presentation as Plies.

There is plenty to love here, so don't be surprised when you find it has become the current soundtrack to your life.

Common has made a record that follows the same formula as its predecessor. Not a bad move considering the success of the four-time Grammy Award-nominated "Be."

Morgan simply lets his rage rock, infusing the album with the same kind of active/ alt-rock straddling approach that's vaulted Seether's previous releases to gold status.

Perfectly Clear is not only persuasive, but down-home, old-school country.