Lateralus sounds like Black Sabbath jamming with Genesis at the bottom of a coal shaft. [Jun/Jul 2001, p.115]

Like a question 1970s double disc compacted into 45 brutally efficient minutes, it has the momentum of a meteor. [Aug 2006, p.108]

The quartet has the virtues of youth... and some of the drawbacks. [May 2007, p.106]

From the orgiastic "We're All In Love" to the painfully mortal "Take a Good Look at My Good Looks," they're all clearly Dolls for life. [Aug 2006, p.113]

A widescreen goth-punk stunner. [Jun 2006, p.144]

The result is slight but often gorgeous. [Apr 2008, p.77]

A downer. [Jul 2007, p.116]

A dazzlingly rhythmic junkyard. [Jun 2006, p.142]

Singer-guitarist Ryan and Gary Jarman comport themselves ably through these dozen distortion-cranked, rhapsodically sung bits of power pop. [2007 Aug, p.110]

There’s a happy messiness throughout: At heart more jazz improviser than control freak, Hebden sounds happiest when things are just about to slip through his fingers.

Sweet, spooky harmonies, partly inspired by the death of a close relative, given a naked acoustic production. [May 2003, p.125]

The kind of laconic, deceptively laid-back statement that cult heroes Alex Chilton or Doug Sahm might have dashed off in their prime. [#18, p.123]

When he's not being sour, Folds' flair for melody and simple, economical arrangements can create wonderful moments. [Aug/Sep 2001, p.122]

This is a band reborn and ready to soar. [Oct/Nov 2001, p.103]

Dido should let her socks go unsorted for a while; genuine sorrow sounds good on her.

Tones down the spazziness and turns up the googly-eyed lyrics about marital bliss. [Jun 2006, p.141]

If she lacks [Fiona] Apple's emotional complexity, her lovely and original debut finds the romance in despair. [Jun/Jul 2004, p.149]

Whether he’s lamenting immigration hassles or imagining himself a depressed American kid fighting in Iraq, this Muslim fan of Biggie and Bruce Lee has a common touch. He’s a universal soldier, not an exotic novelty.

Parish is at his best on songs that, for all their avant-garde trappings, are eloquent enough not to need lyrics. [#10, p.125]

So low-key that even the amplified instruments sound semi-acoustic. [#10, p.116]

There's nothing here that sticks to the ribs very long. [#17, p.136]

Perkins freewheels through American music traditions—Haight-Ashbury folk ('Hey'), New Orleans brass ('Doomsday'), junkyard blues ('I’ll Be Arriving')--with arrangements as rich as a pawn-shop display.

A surprisingly heartfelt collection, heavy on lullaby-like ballads yet still oozing with sexy noir ambiance. [Jun 2005, p.113]

With drums, strings, pianos, amps and backup singers, this is the biggest sounding record ever for a band that used to consist of one guy on acoustic guitar. [Apr 2008, p.81]

Broader and more aggressive than both its predecessor and the 2001 English album Laundry Service, it also lacks a center of gravity. [Jan/Feb 2006, p.96]

In their desperate eagerness to please, HHH offer a few modest pleasures. [#12, p.143]

The mood of Jones's second album is more or less the same, if slightly friskier. [Mar 2004, p.118]

Ikara Colt have clambered up the food chain by choosing the short, sharp shock of mid-'80s Sonic Youth as the template for their entire being. [#12, p.143]