We're actually on a genre-bending journey between esoteric magnificence and chest-crushing heaviness. Good is good. [30 Jul 2016, p.53]

This is simultaneously both the most pulverising and the most memorable release the band have put their name to in years.

As usual, PVRIS demonstrates the value of existing in the spaces between genres, and that moments of combination and contrast are often the most exciting.

As always, the uninitiated need not apply. For the rest of us, Goatwhore are a filthy feast. [12 Jul 2014, p.53]

For those who like their rock adventurous, Easter may be cancelled, but Christmas has come early. [12 Oct 2019, p.55]

FTHC is likely to hit hardest with those who have grown with Frank, witnessing his evolution and the ways in which it’s helped chronicle their own. That’s not to say there’s not much to enjoy for new fans, though, who will no doubt find an empathetic ally in a man whose honesty and anger and heart continue to inspire.

Layered and controlled, Elsie is an album comprised of fine music and superior lyrics. [3 Sep 2011, p.51]

Though the grit they show on Where I Lie suits them well, it is in their more energetic moments, like Lonely As A Shark and Heroine that Gengahr shine. [13 Jun 2015, p.53]

This is the sound of TesseracT getting even better. [25 May 2013, p.54]

Always on the front foot, bloodied but unbowed, IDLES are a claustrophobic, relentless, airtight and pulverising machine of perpetual motion. That they are able to keep themselves airborne throughout Ultra Mono is testament to the art and skill that lies behind such an unstinting display of brazen contempt.

There's a monochrome coolness to everything and a slick, minimal production. There's a newfound calmness and thoughtfulness noticed in the band's songwriting. [14 Jan 2017, p.50]

Often commercial and sometimes devoutly, intentionally un-commercial, Splid is a delightfully edgy album from a combustible unit that, here, sound as if they might blow at any second. Volatile, tuneful, raucous and unstable, it is the perfect rock’n’roll record from a genuinely unique band.

The Spark is very much a record for 2017. [16 Sep 2017, p.50]

This is extreme music heavy in both sound and content. But this is also part of the strength of the album. It is unflinching in its subject matter and depth of its darkness, just as it is unafraid to be exactly what it is. And that's something quite unlike anything else you'll hear in 2022.

Throughout, NIN strike a masterful balance between drilling industrial assaults and eerie ambience. [14 Jan 2017, p.52]

There’s life in the old dog yet, and what’s more he’s learned some new tricks, which can only be applauded at this point. Ordinary Man might end up being the full-stop on an extraordinary career. Let’s hope that’s not the case, but if it is, Ozzy is going out with as much fire and passion as he started with 50 years ago.

Arriving just at the right time for its message to feel truly resonant, Sorry For The Late Reply is a bold, brave, brilliant work.

Easily besting 2013's Kingdom Of Conspiracy, this is dark and ugly death metal for ugly minds. [25 Feb 2017, p.52]

Those still pining for the slick, sparkly, arena-sized rock bombast of the masterful This Is War will be left wanting, but such is how things go on Mars, and it’s a hearteningly better album than the awkward, confused America. The guitars are back.

Very occasionally, they come a school uniform away from actually impersonating their forefathers, but it's a formula they execute wit the same kick-ass conviction that earned them support slots with Iron Maiden. [18 May 2013, p.53]

The BBC Sessions is a collection of impossibly fluent songs delivered in momentary fashion by one of America’s great bands. To hear them doing their thing without the clutter and fuss to which they have increasingly fallen prey is a wonderful thing.

While the album ends quietly, with Kamikaze and the subtly moving It Floated, it’s that sense of fun that burns brightest in its aftermath.

It can be no surprise that the group's second effort in this style is a triumph of both authenticity and quality, of fine songs and tasteful playing. [3 Sep 2011, p.51]

Ignore the anodyne song-titles like Versions Of You, Bad Time and Scars. Sonically, we’re right back into the gravel of early-2000s classic From Here To Infirmary and Good Mourning. Guitars slice, grate and gouge like murder weapons. Matt and Dan Andriano’s vocals are loaded with more wry, world-weary bittersweetness than they have been in years.

Heavy Pendulum is truly a remarkable record, not only for its quality but also because it represents Cave In’s ability to persevere after enduring so much trauma. It’s the work of a wholly rejuvenated and imaginative group.

This music made the film, basically. Of course, what matters for this physical release is that, like all the best soundtracks, these songs works as an album, independently of Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike's martial kerfuffle. [22 Nov 2014, p.52]

Reiði is an album that's as difficult to get the measure of at first as its title is to pronounce. But, like any journey worth taking, it's one that rewards involvement and ceaseless exploration. [17 Mar 2018, p.54]

It's a little formulaic, but that doesn't matter when it sounds so hard-hitting. [21 Dec 2013, p.70]

The band's ninth full-length, is every bit the monster it should be and easily stands alongside their best work. [12 Feb 2011, p.51]

It's as vast and cosmic as the title suggests. [14 Jun 2014, p.54]

5 Seconds To Summer are clearly at their best when drummer Ashton is let loose behind his kit and the band are powering through huge, catchy choruses. [17 Oct 2015, p.52]

Mariachi El Bronx III is the rarest of things: an album that does not feature one bad song. [1 Nov 2014, p.54]

A powerful, soul-striating record that needs and deserves attentive ears. [26 Nov 2011, p.53]

Danny's back where he belongs, and Asking Alexandria have returned with their boldest record yet. [2 Dec 2017, p.49]

21st Century Fiction somehow manages to feel filthy, sexy, and tender all at the same time. In need of an existential crisis but want to feel like a hot rock star at the same time? Please get acquainted with your latest soundtrack to life.

Cradle Of Filth have created a gothic horror that makes Mary Shelley's Frankenstein look like The Emoji Movie. [23 Sep 2017, p.52]

An emotional ride that's hard to tune out. [22 Feb 2020, p.55]

It’s not pared back, but WE ARE CHAOS is a less immediately antagonistic and forward prospect than recent output. But that’s a good thing that’s been mastered to darkly brilliant effect here. Unexpected, bold and artistic, Manson remains an artist it is dangerous to underestimate.

They might have official veteran status but these old dogs remain as vital and exciting as ever. [29 Jul 2016, p.50]

It is more a showcase of Korn's strengths when hard times do come along; harnessing their ability to inspire and energise even in the darkest and most difficult of circumstances. [14 Sep 2019, p.53]

It's the first time that Mastodon have followed up an album with its next logical step. [21 Jun 2014, p.48]

This is smart, sexy and it rocks like a wild thing. When the Future Dust settles, The Amazons might just stand as a band worth all the hype and more.

Across imperfect accounts and admissions, 5SOS are acknowledging how the pressure of performing links to a pressure to always be liked: to be young, to be attractive, to be good but not too good. So, they may piss off a metalhead or two by being colourfully themselves, but they’re sure good at pop rock.

A surprisingly coherent batch of soured psychedelia. [3 Oct 2015, p.52]

The second storey of The House Of Bones story, is as excellent as its predecessor. [30 Mar 2013, p.53]

Somebody's Knocking is undoubtedly a labour of love for its creator, and a joy for everybody else. [12 Oct 2019, p.55]

It's a brave album and, once the dust settles, it'll be remembered as a great one. [24 Aug 2013, p.52]

Venom has injected a whole new life into the British metal heroes. [1 Aug 2015, p.50]

The popping candy melodies remain firmly in place, but this new-look outfit are edgier, gobbier and endearingly post-adolescent. [30 Jan 2016, p.51]

It all adds up to The Bronx's most accomplished record. [26 Jan 2013, p.54]

This is the sound of an already killer band distilling their essence and producing a truly spectacular piece of work. [21 Apr 2018, p.55]

It's a softly stirring soundtrack for a drift into somewhere deep, immersive and dreamy. [11 Aug 2018, p.71]

Ascension is a truly substantial body of work, but it’s executed with an almost ghostly lightness of touch. Evidence of artists who have mastered their dark craft and another late-career triumph from one of metal’s most enduringly brilliant bands.

A triumph. [29 Oct 2011, p.52]

Ultimately, any record which ends with a cover of cult anarcho-surrealists Rudimentary Peni can’t fail to convince in its sincere respect for its predecessors and inspirations.

Fortunately, Even in Arcadia’s minor quibbles are easily dwarfed by the height of its peaks. It isn’t quite an album of all-timers, but it’s more than enough to bring in wave after wave of gleaming gold spoils all over again.

The concentrated excellence on offer should placate any disappointment about the meagre portions. [23 Jun 2018, p.55]

The rattling, almost post-rock cacophony that swirls around her, weaving in and out of chilling, eerily measured moments, makes for a spectacular, engulfing experience, too. [4 Apr 2019, p.71]

You don’t have to take a crash course on two decades of complex lore to enjoy Act II, though. For all their intricate storytelling and consummate musical skills, Coheed remain surprisingly accessible.

Nine records in it is inevitable that anything they do will have a particular sheen, but creatively, in performance, and in energy they continue to operate on a plane all of their own. And in a world of uncertainty, that's a very welcome thing.

Wild Loneliness is the fourth and best album Superchunk have recorded since returning to active service in 2010, and even stacks up next to classics from earlier in their career such as Here’s Where The Strings Come In or No Pocky For Kitty.

Some of their most effective songwriting to date. The hazy, swirling sound is as beautiful as ever – see the silken Pill To Swallow and the gossamer-like I Held You Like Glass – but this time, they’ve spun it into more impactful shapes.

Even though you could not call the songs 'lean' – half of the eight clock in at over seven minutes and none under five – there is a sense that not a moment's wasted, everything is exactly where it needs to be.

Finding solace in the fight, The Hope List is a resounding show of strength from Lonely The Brave – one which points towards a future rich with possibility.

The greatest achievement is how easy to swallow this all is. The shifts between chonky riffs and mellower, jazzy polyrhythms and gorgeous David Gilmour-ish guitar solos are so smooth as to be in some way unnoticeable as they happen.

It lurches, as such compilations sometimes do, but those lurches, are from intimate to inviting, triumphant to introspective and funny to heartfelt. [14 Jan 2012, p.51]

The Mandrake Project is a colossal idea carried out by an artist who revels in snowballing ideas and having to work hard to cram it all in. It’s the most Bruce Dickinson of all Bruce Dickinson’s solo works. It's also the best.

An album peppered with strong and vibrant songs. [1 Sep 2018, p.53]

Here is something far looser and more fun, while still being brilliantly crafted and played with absolute power. [15 Sep 2018, p.53]

As scattered as it can be, its hit rate remains high and it’s never content to just coast.

Though the band rage like a jungle fire, it's the vocals that set them apart from their peers. [19 Apr 2011, p.52]

A sonic gem that's both immediate and visceral in its delivery, as well as remaining a genuinely exciting prospect. [25 Aug 2012, p.54]

This is an album for the coldest of autumns and for dark nights of the soul. It’s hellish, haunting and an emotional maelstrom, deeper and more textured than Witch Fever have ever gone before.

An album that once again sees Wizard creating a new landscape with only the slightest adjustment. Yeah, it's more rock'n'roll, but it's still ultra-stoned, it's still ultra-heavy, and Electric Wizard still hate[s] you. [25 Nov 2017, p.51]

Here, he's finally harnessed the fury coursing through his foundation, channeling and unleashing it with streamlined precision. [28 Jan 2017, p.48]

Danko Jones has plainly not lost his mojo. [11 Mar 2017, p.52]

Songs like She and the superb On The Wings Of Gloria reek of patchouli and incense, their warm sounds bring F's satanic lyrics colourfully to life. [3 Dec 2012, p.52]

It finds the band sounding leaner and more direct than ever before, [11 Feb 2012, p.52]

It's up there with the best albums they've ever made. [11 Apr 2015, p.53]

Unlike the rest of us willpower-lacking lightweights, he manages to succeed; crafting an album that nods to the Rattlesnakes’ past but strikes out boldly for a bright new future.

The only thing you can be sure of with Two Hands is to expect the unexpected. [11 Apr 2015, p.53]

Touche are still gonna pull at heartstrings, but now they'll suffocate and strangle you with them, too. [21 Sep 2013, p.53]

This album is polished indie-punk at its near best. [28 Jan 2017, p.52]

Handwritten is The Gaslight Anthem's finest and most authoritative album. [28 Jul 2012, p.52]

Conceptually and musically, it’s a startlingly ambitious piece of work from a truly iconoclastic band. Their volatile negativity should, by rights, lead to an alienating experience, but instead Vein.fm summon a catharsis which feels timely and invigorating.

There’s a gleaming shine on everything that fills it all with vitality. Far from a step back, or attempt to redress something, a return to heaviness is simply the next piece of the picture. That you can hear them fair running towards it with refreshed enthusiasm for such things only makes it sing all the louder.

A powerful and worthy addition to the band's increasingly diverse catalogue. [15 Jun 2019, p.55]

The Last Spire is the sound of Cathedral going out on a high. [27 Apr 2013, p.55]

Yet while this album rails against the world our plutocratic/oligarchic overlords have created for the rest of us, it also displays a vulnerability that’s rare in hardcore and post-hardcore.

Ellipsis is the band's best album since Puzzle. [16 Jul 2016, p.50]

Vital for obsessives. [20 Jul 2013, p.53]

It is music that asks for patience n an impatient age. [10 Oct 2015, p.52]

There’s still a lot that will be familiar to longtime fans, but the most impressive thing is how passionate Rise Against remain. Twenty years in, and their revolutionary fire is still as relevant and as sadly needed as ever.

It has evolved beyond the blueprint they set out on their first album to expand their sound into new and exciting territory. Whether you’re a fan of slowcore, grunge, doom or shoegaze there is a song for absolutely everyone to enjoy on this album. Simply put, it is a must listen.

Scale The Summit are forging their own path, hitting a creative peak which perfectly echoes their name. [15 Jun 2013, p.54]

Hot Cakes may tail off a bit, but, ultimately, it proves as capable of suspending your belief and blowing your mind as any blockbuster. [18 Aug 2012, p.52]

A welcome and overdue return. [18 May 2019, p.55]

Nine years in the making, this record heralds a bigger, catchier next gen Goldfinger. [8 Jul 2017, p.51]