British Lion is a brilliant album. [8 Sep 2012, p.52]

It's so genuinely anti-social, abrasive and purposeful in its mission to turn you off that it's actually impressive. [25 May 2019, p.55]

The characteristically classy playing and Angela's seething vocal delivery will provide plenty to satisfy existing fans but, importantly, this album also captures a band still hungry to progress both creatively and commercially. You can consider Arch Enemy's rise officially back on. [28 May 2011, p.50]

Sure, some songs are better than others, but Ego Trip’s a rare thing: a 14-track album that features not a single duffer.

Anguished and uncomfortable as it may be, Chip King and Lee Buford have constructed a brutalist masterpiece, here.

It’s evocative stuff, but what makes it more compelling is that it’s delivered by a 43-year-old woman whose tastes can’t be contained by low ceilings, so these observations don’t necessarily arrive with the musical backing you might expect.

There's the occasional turbulent moments of riff-deja-vu, but ultimately it's a fascinating, satisfying and impressive prog-metal odyssey. [9 Apr 2011, p.51]

Finally, this rock star has some rock worthy of the same name. [23 Jul 2011, p.50]

Permanence is a brave, bold step into a new beginning. [19 Sep 2015, p.51]

As a neon-lit tonic to Drones, Simulation Theory is bang on the money. But as an exploration of a new frontier, it's a genuinely exciting musical adventure in its own right. [10 Nov 2018, p.53]

A record that's powered in equal parts by defiance and ambition. [18 Mar 2017, p.52]

Good, old-fashioned raging against the machine has rarely sounded better. [1 Feb 2014, p.55]

The Ocala quintet's heaviest record since 2007's For Those Who Have Heart. [27 Aug 2016, p.50

Cult Of Luna’s evolution shows no signs of slowing down. The Long Road North is another welcome addition on their quest to push sonic boundaries and is one of their hardest hitting releases yet.

The album is far heavier, rawer and rootsier than its predecessor. [3 May 2014, p.52]

For an album about broken faith, this should convert a lot of new listeners. [29 Aug 2015, p.52]

Power Up is a reminder that this music has a power that belies its apparent simplicity (and here do not mistake this for being easy – go stand in a practice room and listen to how many drummers can’t do the ’DC beat properly). The context and tragic shadow from which it comes and the world into which it arrives makes its odes to freewheeling good times so very poignant.

A dozen svelte and self-assured songs that are ear-catching in terms of being both highly accessible while being imaginatively arranged. [3 Dec 2016, p.53]

It's not quite Destroyer good, but then again, it's not quite Animalize bad either. [13 Oct 2012, p.53]

It's a divergence from Green Day, certainly. But a good one. [23 Nov 2013, p.52]

Ultimately, this album is a promise that as brilliantly beguiling as Chelsea Wolfe has always been, her big picture is still coming into focus.

Fuelled by personal tragedies and savage times, this fifth album is understandably dark in tone, but never feels too austere to engage.

Single Mothers refreshingly don't care if you like them or not. So take them or leave them, but you'd be a fool to miss out. [17 Jul 2017, p.53]

A grandiose and ambitious album. [5 Nov 2016, p.50]

This remains a feral ball of aggression and loathing. And frankly, we wouldn't want it any other way. [13 Oct 2012, p.54]

These masterfully cherry-picked tunes help explain why it's not always clear whether Ghost B.C. are a metal act with pop leanings or vice versa. [9 Nov 2013, p.52]

One of the defining features of Beatopia is that it’s much less immediate than Fake It Flowers – there aren’t so many catchy, love-at-first-listen bops, but the ones that are there, namely the fizzy pop-rock jam 10:36 and the scuzzy euphoria of Talk, are a lot of fun. The more left field moments here are handled with just as much assurance and burst with creativity.

It's as sharp as can be, as powerful as an atom bomb, and exactly the sort of thrilling metal adventure you want from them. [17 Mar 2018, p.53]

It might not have anything with the same riotous energy as It's A Raid, his punked-up duet with Post Malone that went off like a feral firework, but it still radiates a sense of the thing you love keeping you excited and feeling alive.

This is sparse, atmospheric and utterly compelling. [19 Feb 2012, p.51]

And so, just like that, Tenacious D are back. They're funny, they're absurd and they're hotter than a phoenix. Sorry, fenix. Let's just hope we don't have to wait another six years for the next one. [May 2012, p.52]

Some will inevitably hold every Public Enemy album up against their ironclad classics like Fear Of A Black Planet and It Takes A Nation Of Millions, but to compare What You Gonna Do… to these untoppable milestones is to miss the point. What matters is that PE are not only still going after all this time, but still making music that matters.

Given how good Meliora is, it's fair to say Ghost are ablaze too. [29 Aug 2015, p.51]

For those who like their rock and metal to hit with swift immediacy, Take Me Back To Eden’s hour-plus runtime might prove a bit of a slog, but if you allow yourself to be fully immersed in Sleep Token’s world, the sonic rewards are plentiful.

A record which never really sags – an impressive feat for a mixtape of 17 songs, none of which are interludes – and instead engages the listener throughout, with a constant stream of fresh ideas thrown into the pot. When it comes to rock and hip-hop colliding, this is the sound of the future.

Calm and collected when it needs to be but by no means lacking in heart and passion, this album is a fine collection of songs by an artist intent on forging her own path.

It’s a record influenced by Sabbath and Sleep, Power Trip and Pantera – and it shows through proudly.

It's a record so strong that it's hard to single out standout tracks, and even harder to locate points of weakness, and by anyone's standards this is one hell of an achievement. [30 Apr 2011, p.50]

A cohesive, hard-hitting and bold album. [13 Oct 2018, p.53]

It's a hella mega good time from start to finish. [1 Feb 2020, p.53]

The result is the band's most consistently exciting release to date. [19 Feb 2012, p.51]

BC's second album fizzes with both upbeat hymns to fun in the sun and achingly sad odes to lost love. [May 2012, p.53

The chaotic metalcore drums and vocals effortlessly play host to hulking, Skrillex-sized basslines, early Linkin Park turntablism and violent, Prodigy-style synths, as their sound aggressively morphs from track to track. [31 Aug 2013, p.53]

Already legends, American Nightmare's iconic reputation should only be enhanced by this mighty return. [17 Feb 2018, p.52]

Their lengthy hiatus has clearly not dulled Hot Snakes' razor-sharp edge, one bit, making Jericho Sirens a very welcome return. [17 Mar 2018, p.55]

Played at the correct volume, this will certainly threaten the structural stability of your house. [22 Apr 2017, p.52]

Countless bands wish they could make music as blissfully abrasive as this. [11 Jul 2015, p.51]

This is a noble and compelling body of music. [Jul 2011, p.51]

Whether this is music of meditative transcendence or uncanny terror will depend not just on the listener, but on their frame of mind and surroundings. What remains undeniable is that Sunn O)))’s all-enveloping textures occupy a landscape like no other. Slow your breathing, open your ears and let yourself be taken there.

There's moments of chain-breaking experimentation sewn throughout. It's not going to freak out anyone accustomed to KsE's meat, but it's definitely sharpened and refreshed what they're serving up. [12 Mar 2016, p.50]

It's impressive to hear how Sleigh Bells rock so hard with so little. [19 Feb 2012, p.52]

Not Your Kind of People is a wonderful album full of something Garbage have never really possessed before: humanity. [May 2012, p.53]

[Trent has] ended up somewhere unique, exciting, and genuinely of his own making. [16 Jun 2018, p.57]

...Of the Dark Light has particularly sharp fangs. [17 Jul 2017, p.52]

Bar the addition of piano on a few tracks, I'm With You is not so much a fresh start as a wonderful, trouble-free return to the familiar, laid back West Coast rock terrain of their back-to-back classics, Californication and 2002's By The Way. [27 Aug 2011, p.50]

There’s nothing on here quite as catchy as Tiny from Give A Glimpse Of What Yer Not, but that may well be because this is a more consistent effort, an album full of highlights that reminds us that being ​‘lovely’ and ​‘loud’ aren’t mutually exclusive qualities, while furthering one of the most consistent catalogues in rock.

Yes, in places the jams get a bit too funky, but even these missteps don't disrupt the haze you enter elsewhere. [16 Aug 2014, p.54]

Balancing an instinct for dancefloor-crushing industrial with gloomily lush soundscapes, Rat Wars suggests that even when HEALTH are at their most meticulously state-of-the-art, a fervent need to express honest emotion finds humanity overriding tech to emerge as the dominant element in their work.

Hammer of The Witches finds these fiends in fine fettle. [4 Jul 2015, p.52]

This certainly proves that they are still a formidable force in contemporary metal. [11 Jun 2011, p.50]

Past //Present // Future dismantles every box the band have found themselves pigeonholed in, and sets them on their own path of integrity and triumph.

Sixteen albums in, that they continue to surprise and create as much as they do is to be celebrated on its own. That it represents their best work in a decade is the triumph of a genuinely magnificent band.

An incredibly wholesome listen. [20 Oct 2012, p.54]

Fewer songs here race and pulsate as before, but Chuck Ragan and co.'s gruff mix of grit and sweat remains in full effect. [May 2012, p.54]

Does this all meld together into the cohesive whole of a perfect album? Well, no, not really. But does The 2nd Law represent a band whose only limitations seem to be the high ceiling of their collective imagination? The answer here is an emphatic yes. [6 Oct 2012, p.52]

The Texans still sound like a band capable of stealing hearts forever. [1 Feb 2020, p.55]

Physical Thrills is the sound of a band able to have a deep spring clean and polish up their best sides, to thrilling effect.

Pawns & Kings is classic Alter Bridge – nice big choruses, intelligent lyrics, rock music meant to be played on big stages – but with their muscle properly tearing through their shirts. And though for longtime fans this shouldn't come as a surprise, the level to which they've dived in here still may do.

It feels refreshing, and like a bunch of really good mates have got together to share their experiences with the world. L.S. Dunes could well change the tide on all things post-hardcore.

Once again, "epic" is the name of Mr. Townsend's game. [27 Aug 2016, p.51]

A right royal ripper. [16 Sep 2017, p.51]

A typically obdurate outing from an always captivating contributor. [15 Apr 2017, p.52]

Ghostemane knows who he is. That he expresses himself this articulately without giving too much of that away is in itself testament to his esoteric skills.

Essential? For completists. Worth hearing? Absolutely. [7 Nov 2015, p.50]

By showcasing progressive metal in its truest, multi-dimensional form, it strides triumphant. [12 Nov 2011, p.54]

This is what Blue Pills do best, daring to imagine what it would have been like if Aretha Franklin fronted Deep Purple in a cosmic blur of crackling fuzz and feel-good soul. [20 Aug 2016, p.67]

Another startling offering, then, from one of the most consistently perfect bands in post-rock. [1 Sep 2012, p.51]

Only Dust Remains is a brave, powerful and uncompromising album that holds nothing back, either in terms of Ashanti’s own life, or her views about what’s happening outside it. Yet bleak and dark as it is, there’s nevertheless hope to be found here.

Several bold steps forward, while looking back over one shoulder. [27 May 2017, p.50]

Standards is a total success. [30 Apr 2016, p.68]

This is one of the finest pure punk releases of the year. [ 30 Jun 2012, p.54]

At 72 minutes, it's quite the voyage--but please, don't remain in your seat at all times. [6 Oct 2012, p.53]

As well as being excellent, Local Honey is evidence that the man himself is able to adjust his songwriting to his circumstances without compromising in its quality. It all makes for a seriously sweet listen that reaffirms the Jersey boy as a storyteller and songwriter par excellence.

Karnivool have made a record to enjoy as much as admire. [20 Jul 2013, p.54]

Katakana builds from scratchy verses to a drilling riff, Missile Command boasts an undulating Sergio Vega bassline par excellence and album closer Rodan summons an oversized riff worthy of its kaiju namesake. Yet so often it’s the little surprises, the achingly cool flourishes, that impress here.

From gritty social commentary to '80s metal cheese and retro-futuristic space rock, this is an album that sees Ghost spreading their dark wings. [2 Jun 2018, p.53]

Surging with reckless punk spirit and swooning romanticism, there's no fear of Beach Slang losing momentum after break-up rumours earlier this year. You might consider the album title ironic since the trio are far on the other side of 19, but perhaps that's its beauty. [24 Sep 2016, p.52]

At it’s core, it’s an endearing celebration of friendship and life’s small joys. Contrary to Dune Rats’ self-deprecating quip, this record doesn’t suck at all, but turn it up anyway.

Musically, Requiem is heavy but not stodgy, fresh but familiar, and accessible without ever feeling forced. Its wisest creative decision, though, is keeping things lean and mean. At just nine tracks, there are few moments that feel anything less than essential.

Every note and drumbeat speaks of friends enjoying the freedom to do whatever they damn well want, in the company of musicians and composers whose talents bring out the best in each other. Even amongst such impressive back catalogues, Killer Be Killed have crafted a record which absolutely destroys in its own right.

With Tony’s smooth voice the perfect accompaniment to all of this, Genghis Tron Version 2.0 makes for one of the most exciting returns to action in recent years, and with Dream Weapon they have only cemented their enviable legacy.

Their best record yet. [21 Mar 2015, p.54]

A reminder of how fun music can be. Sure, it’s not as joyous as Morbid Stuff, but for a stopgap to keep fans going in these bewildering times, it does the job nicely.

It’s a good album, though not an Opeth classic. It occasionally meanders and feels in need of a few more truly golden moments to tie its various eccentricities together into a brilliant whole.

Compounding shades of this all-encompassing bleakness and newfound furore to an already formidable plateau of emo, indie and shoegaze could just about make it mewithoutYou's finest work to date. [20 Oct 2018, p.55]

They might not always move in straight lines, but as odd as Spielbergs can sometimes seem, they're also capable of great things with whatever they fancy turning their hands to. [2 Feb 2019, p.55]

As much of Go Now And Live proves, these days they've embraced a more mainstream, hook-fuelled sensibility. It's one that works well, but there are problems. [23 Apr 2011, p.50]

The results are much as you'd expect, with crazy lyrics and the occasional brilliant riff. [21 Oct 2017, p.52]