Everything is here: melody, harmony, great lyrics, smart instrumentation and pure emotion. It’s book ended by two of the best songs of the year and everything in between is music gold.

The self-titled album brings the listener into a glorious sound world of first rate noise-pop and never lets go.

The tunes on this EP are raw, sharp, and catchy, and always push with some kind of propulsive rhythm--a dynamic strut of drums, guitar, and vocals, even on the calmer verse sections.

This record is easily on par with Corgan's solo record as one of the worst things he has ever done.

If you're a hardcore Interpol fan, already accustomed to the gloomy, brooding aspects of the band's full-releases, I would strongly recommend Our Love to Admire as a solid release which easily competes with Antics. However, if you've only dabbled, this album isn't explosive enough to edge out many of the other recent releases in this genre.

Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga is painfully short; a lean, black-tie rock album, and one of the year's best in a year full of great records.

As reunion/comeback albums go, Time on Earth is outstanding.

The Else is lined up with catchy, solid songs that I can’t help but sing along to. So though it’s not the best Giants album - it’s good, and it’s kept me entertained.

Neither too mature (i.e. boring), nor too desperately age-defying (i.e. embarrassing), Three Easy Pieces potently reenergizes older Tom trademarks as well as imprinting a few new ones.

With Icky Thump they have proven, yet again, that being musically sound in both songwriting and craftsmanship, while knowing how to exercise instrumentation is key in making a solid album in today’s day and age.

When the band operates under more traditional songwriting styles they can be quite catchy, but the more wandering, abstract moments can sometimes wander a little too far into non-structured noise.

Arthur & Yu's inconsistently brewed blend of neo-psychedelic indie-folk is definitely an acquired taste and the home-recorded, lo-fi production along with uninspired songwriting renders In Camera incapable of being a worthwhile investment of your listening time.

While Era Vulgaris is not cohesive in tone (Could it be a reflection of today’s fragmented, compartmentalized world that pulls in all directions?) and doesn’t fire consistently on all cylinders, the album is still chock-a-block with complex instrumental arrangements, stop-and- start rhythms, gracefully refined harmonies, cranked-up choruses, and pointed commentary on the modern world.

Wild Mountain Nation keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire time and it’s a fine piece of music.

To be succinct and frank, Boxer is superb. Not only did The National create a startling, astonishing work of genius but they also crafted an album that is one beautiful piece of art.

Whilst the nostalgia-soaked Sky Blue Sky will cause consternation amongst those who backed Wilco’s brave efforts to bend the staidness of plaid-shirted alt. rock, it’s still arguably one of the most charmingly-effortless records Jeff Tweedy has ever spearheaded.

The Beatific Visions is not flawless, but even with a few glaring misses, this album is above average and often brilliant.

Volta is her most accessible album in years, even if it is sometimes at the expense of its own best interest.

While there isn’t a song that will stick out immediately such as “When K Got Over Me” or “I Can’t Seem To Make You Mine” there are plenty of songs that will find themselves ingrained in your memory long after a listen.

Whilst there has been a little external redecoration, many core elements remain in the band’s unchangeable centre of gravity.

Whilst this self-titled Mice Parade set may struggle to push Adam Pierce’s envelope much beyond a well-sealed blue-print, it does at least keep the momentum of his low-key career moving along at a respectable and occasionally unpredictable rate.

A good, albeit soft, Brit-pop CD, from a band that continues to mature.

As usual, Mascis' guitar--a stirring strength, charming and expressive, a poignant power, is the star of this show--and as a whole unit, they haven’t sounded this good in about sixteen years.

Ultimately, it ends up being one fantastic follow-up that brims at the sides with vehement energy.

Once the songs on Lion the Girl are over, they are as difficult to remember as those wisps of dream that dissolve upon waking.

Dumb Luck has [its] share of intriguing moments, on a few shining tracks.

[It] would be a shame for you to miss.

Arguably [Cave's] most convincing collection of boisterousness and drama since 1994’s Let Love In.