It doesn't all hit home, but at its best ("Heaven/ Where True Love Goes," "In the End," "Green Fields, Golden Sands"), this record is uplifting enough to satisfy even a 30-year thirst. [18 Nov 2006]

Overall, Sugar Ray sticks to what it does best: helping audiences realize that there's no better alternative to a California fun-in-the sun day at the beach.

As projects of this nature go, this is a remarkably cohesive, high-quality set. For the most part, the material is appealing, if not terribly memorable.

Dennen's tenuous vocals (and lyrics) are better suited to silly love songs than this sort of material, and though producer John Alagia knows how to make the guitars jingle and jangle and how to work up a soft, swimmy groove, Dennen needs a little more to rise out of the ever-growing multitude of sensitive guitar dudes.

A mostly solid collection of quirky dance pop and cryptic rock.

There is an easy-listening elegance to his songs, but the album plays out like a soundtrack to sipping coffee. [28 Jan 2006]

Halfway between a fraternity kegger and a housewarming party.

More hit than miss. [30 Jun 2007]

It's a pleasant enough, if uneven work. [14 Apr 2007]

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

Overall, listeners will struggle to classify "Rubies," as much for Bejar's blurring of bluesy folk, pop and lo-fi indie rock as his unconventional delivery.

By abandoning the gloom and doom and embracing quirky power-pop, the Stills seem to have morphed into a less minimalist Spoon, and your replay mileage may vary based on how strongly you liked what they were doing before.

Snoop has found a happy balance between pop and hardcore. [25 Nov 2006]

There's nothing really spectacular about any track, although in a strange way the entire album does have the ability to grow on you.

Where the Faint falls short, though, is its lack of daring; even with the welcome addition of strings (apropos of its cinematic live show) and varying styles, "Wet From Birth" sounds contained and merely likeable.

There are moments when you wish for just a tiny bit of dirt, or just a little bit of edge.

As uneven as the film itself.

This record isn't for casual listening, so those checking out the Mars Volta for the first time should take it slow to prevent a sonic hangover.

The rest of Identified, though, panders to the preteen demo with stop-start pop that ranges from pleasant (the title track) to dull ("Amazed") to off-putting ("Hook It Up"). But for little girls, this is one nonstop singalong.

An album that would have been great in 1983; now, it is more of a nostalgic lark.

Fans of Wilco will certainly oblige Kotche's singular visions; fans of "Being There," maybe not so much.

With a few notable exceptions... inspiration is just what this album lacks.

Although the arrangements remain impressive, there are moments when it feels as though Dungen should stick with a quicker pace. [26 May 2007]

A fairly paint-by-numbers affair.

More often than not, even Shadow's most extreme sonic detours hit home.

It is simply miserable, heavy, repetitive and cathartic. [18 Nov 2006]

The group's live shows are the stuff of legend--perhaps that's why the act's debut album, #1, seems a bit disappointing without the corresponding over-the-top visuals.

The seemingly ageless Australian rock combo mostly employs its same tried-and-true formula on the audio side of the Black Ice equation.