Redeemer of Souls is irrefutable prof that Priest are still a force on the metal scene. [Aug 2014, p. 204]

It's McClain's show, with writing as young as yesterday. [Oct 2022, p.71]

In a nutshell: fuzzily fierce.

Pe'ahi sounds like their strongest gallery of timeless anthems so far. [Aug 2014, p. 204]

Now up to seven discs with live set, it's even harder to resist. [Dec 2023, p.85]

At first you think, "Meh, more generic LA stuntcore." then realise you're loving it. [Nov 2022, p.75]

Lawrence has delivered the best daft/sincere novelty pop album you'll hear all yeat. It's a sugar rush. [Nov 2025, p.81]

They've mastered the marriage of swagger and sensitivity, guts and grace. [Mar 2023, p.76]

A niche but strident record. [Aug 2013, p.88]

Debut album Dark Black Makeup is a thrilling half-hour of punk rock with a small ‘p’ but a big UNK!--hooky, heavy and furious in all the right places.

He now sounds much calmer, serene even, on Shearwater's tenth, which floats where 2016's Jet Plane And Oxbow raged. This never means it's predictable. [Summer 2022, p.78]

It's a pleasing patchwork of echoes of the past. [Feb 2014, p.92]

This isn't music intended to inspire soul-searching. With its fat, fuzzy riffs and living-for-the-weekend vibe, it's made entirely for boozy barbecues and blokey banter, and maybe the odd trip to a monster truck rally. [Mar 2020, p.88]

The Afterman: Descension is both a thoughtful and thought-provoking album, and one that works on several levels. [Feb 2013, p.94]

He doesn't disappoint as he smatters the bulk of this new record with orchestral strings. The pick of the tracks here are the pulsating Pretty Boy, the string-laden I'm Not Giving Up Tonight and the soaring Open The Dorr, See What You Find. [Jul 2023, p.84]

Anti-glory's an easy in, but you'll need to retune your ears to Horsegirl's particular frequency before this debut reveals its full brilliance. [Summer 2022, p.79]

When he's not letting loose with some typically emotive soloing on this mix of covers and originals, his voice is still every bit its equal. [May 2020, p.77]

For the most part, though, Saviors is the sound of reassuring rebellion from the midst of the 21st Century breakdown. [Mar 2024, p.80]

A group at ease with both their instruments and each other, showing no signs of rust or sclerosis despite their long lay-off. [Jun 2015, p.88]

There’s more than an hour of music on Oochya! – a double LP’s worth, in old money – and as with most albums of such length you can easily argue over the more forgettable tracks that could have been left out. But for the most part the record showcases a band still looking forward to the next challenge. [Apr 2022, p.78]

Channel[s] the nagging ingenuity of classic post-punk(pop) to sparkling effect. [Jul 2022, p.83]

An evocative semi-concept work based in the 1890s. [Jun 2022, p.83]

Quality workmanship. [Mar 2024, p.82]

My World Is Over proves to be another step up. [Feb 2013, p.95]

The single Mixed Emotions (I Didn't Know How To Tell You What I Was Going Through) is the album's manifesto, the chiming opening riff breaking into a wall of sound while singer Josh Franceschi howls his failure to communicate into the gale. And the onslaught rarely falters. [Mar 2023, p.78]

A loose concept album that charts the lows, highs and subsequent recovery of its protagonist, sonically it’s punchier, angrier even, than previous records.

Suitably weathered by age and experience, [Dion's voice] hardly gathered rust and has retained its lustrous power and soulful richness. Co-producer/multi-instrumentalist Wayne Hood wisely pins that voice to the centre of this fabulous record, with A-listers very much in supporting roles. [Summer 2020, p.86]

They've filtered their inheritance through their jam-band generation, and the sound is heavier, muddier at times. [Sep 2020, p.88]