3D's sheer creative vibrancy is itself a testament to Lopes's live-wire charisma. [#12, p.155]

This successor improves, sonically (recording in a studio with a producer will do that) and in its energy and sharp writing.

An hour's worth of the good stuff: churning, yearning synth-rock. [Jun 2005, p.114]

Since his 2005 debut, T-Pain has seen his Auto-Tuned swagger jacked by everyone from Kanye to Lil Wayne, but he has kept his sound fresh with a bottomless bag of hooks and a grainy rasp that the computers can’t buff away.

The West Coast stalwart's ninth album doesn't entirely make good on 'Seduction''s wacky promise. [Apr 2008, p.82]

The gruff, authoritative Chuck and irrepressible second-banana-turned-VH1-ladykilla Flavor Flav know that uplifting kids corroded by gangsta rap means offering something emotionally fierce and reasonably current.

Creamy and precise, every coo and arpeggio blows through your ear buds like the ruffle of crisp bills.

Creeper retain their melodic ingenuity and slowly ascending anthems, but their vision is scattered -- the band can't decide on a single melody per song, so they ramble from one promising yet half-formed tune to the next. [Jun/Jul 2001, p.107]

These songs are pleasant, stripped-down and also a little limp. [Oct 2003, p.124]

The pie-in-the-sky ambitions may be a little much, but credit Franti for dreaming up a kinder, gentler new world order. [Sep 2003, p.122]

The Texas combo strings together images that never add up to cohesive narratives. [Aug 2004, p.137]

An ultrapolite, jazz-inflected collection of tunes that will reassure coming-down ravers, but it offers little to quicken the pulse. [Oct/Nov 2001, p.104]

He has a dusky, intimate voice and a weakness for overwrought lyrics. [May 2004, p.126]

Stylistic attention-deficit disorder dilutes the focus and also dates it. [#17, p.137]

A growth statement even diehard fans of its debut couldn't have expected. [#8, p.122]

A radiant collection of pure pop songs. [#10, p.125]

These oddballs have chops aplenty, and the balancing act they pull off on Quebec is no joke. [Sep 2003, p.132]

An only sometime thing. [Jan/Feb 2005, p.112]

Scored with ramshackle grandeur by scribbly guitars, fat horns, poignant keyboards and ragtag sing-alongs, Benaim’s lyrics narrate the anxieties and optimisms of New York City’s young, educated and underemployed.

There are magical, creepy moments here. [Nov 2005, p.131]

Proves that [You Forgot It In People] wasn’t a fluke.

In fleshing out the contours of a sound once slavishly indebted to early-'80s titans like JD and the Smiths, they've nuanced the moods Banks moons over. Awesome for him. Only so-so for us. [August 2007, p.114]

Faith in the Future is built with recycled beats and borrowed sounds, relying on castoff samples and guest contributions... [Aug/Sep 2001, p.132]

Her solo debut... spruces up a vintage style--'80s SoCal new wave--with lyrical twists. [#8, p.126]

May be the best CD of his career. [Feb/Mar 2002, p.112]

Expert, tuneful and profoundly inoffensive. [Dec 2004, p.134]

Dignified and confident but slightly starved for ideas. [Aug 2003, p.125]

McCrea is still spinning wry, keenly observed stories, though the band has broadened its stylistic base some... [Aug/Sep 2001, p.121]