"Long Walk Home" passes the ultimate soundtrack test: it stands alone beautifully, capably supporting the work of director Phillip Noyce while at the same time feeling like a natural and fluid extension of Gabriel's own distinctive artistic vision.

Yet another brilliant pop record for the college radio crowd.

Night Works is dramatic and flirtatious, as well as warm and inviting.

The music is stripped-down but robust, with de la Rocha on vocals and keyboard and Theodore on drums.

"Sound Loaded" shows Martin walking the tightrope between requisite familiarity and fresh musical ground with remarkable ease.

Light on filler, "The DEFinition" proves that, after 21 years in the industry, LL is as relevant as many of his contemporaries.

It's hard to sound as sweet as Tegan & Sara and not come across as precious. But somehow this duo does it, and the result is fantastic.

It's his delivery -- growling, El Camino exhaust-flavored and addictive like old smokes -- that make this crackling debut easy to listen to, if incredibly difficult to file.

[It] rocks harder and is more diverse than its three predecessors. [18 Nov 2006]

Digesting the blend takes some time, but the best moments offer that immediacy, as on the opening punch of the groovy title track and the chiming "Magnificent."

New Zealand supergroup the Clean once again makes a case that the world's most intriguing pop music comes from that small, faraway land.

"Myth Takes" ... should see the festive art-rock collective bop its way out of cult status, as each of the 10 cuts on this album adventurously cascade through genres without ever losing a groove. [10 Mar 2007]

"Because of the Times" is a brooder at heart, and much of the material here is some of the Kings' most demanding to date. It's also among their best. [14 Apr 2007]

The densely produced layers of previous works are gone in favor of a big and bright fun-house feel.

Jem's Dido-like vocals are consistently a soothing treat, but on the whole there's a sultriness and spark missing from the material.

While the debut showed him eager to step outside the confines of STP, he essentially has nothing to prove here, and as a result, it's a casual-sounding record.

Hatfield tears through 12 songs, posturing and pouting over caustic guitars and leaving her singalong hooks raw and unedited. [13 Aug 2005]

Everclear's first collection since 1997's "So Much For The Afterglow" is an unabashed love letter to the '70s, when AM radio still ruled and pop music was simple, good fun.

For The Alchemy Index Vols. III & IV: Air & Earth, the material is appropriately lofty to represent the former element but surprisingly sparse for the latter.

As on many valiant attempts by electronic artists to cross over, there's too much going on. But Cope succeeds in creating an overall sense of unrest and some moments of electro-transcendence.

While the middle tracks tend to get lost in the shuffle, fans of Brock's Modest Mouse will be drawn to the horn-inflected swagger of "Bonnie and Clyde" and the stretched-out jam of album highlight "Konny and Jim."

Costello's vocal range is challenged like never before, but his phrasing is always on the money, and Joe Henry's production makes it all sound so natural.

The album distinguishes itself from Chapman's previous releases with its stellar studio band and its refusal to submit to pop production. [17 Sep 2005]

While not every song is a winner, the title track and sleaze anthem 'This Ain't a Love Song' are standouts.

Seal's David Foster-produced tribute to classic soul is a figure skater of a collection, all elegance and grace. But some of these songs require the more aggressive approach of a hockey player.

Pearl Jam returns to peak form with a 13-song collection of driving power rock reminiscent of the band's glory days of the early to mid-1990s.

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

A welcome return. [22 Oct 2005]