Neatly cut and effortless in its melodic simplicity.

Here more than ever, the songs come before the samples; while the samples and sounds still accompany everything, they are now more like a third band member than leading player. This gives The Books a newfound depth of subtlety.

Decidedly unremarkable.

Whereas previous efforts spawned a shrouded sadness that sought engagement by keeping a distance, this work squares its shoulders at once, fervent in its desire to have its audience lend an ear for at least a moment.

Darkness at Noon is the most exciting record to be put out this semester.

It's hard not to stare in open-mouthed amazement at the sheer brilliance of Black Sheep Boy, though you're trying to clinically dissect all the elements that make it so.

One must realize that this album was created to be fresh but not necessarily edgy. The difference means that the effort is intended to be highly enjoyable but not breakthrough material.

They are not so much copycats as they are skilled apprentices.

The first three-quarters of Beauty and the Beat stands as something to be admired.

In a way, re-releasing brand new material automatically canonizes it. You Are the Quarry received moderate praise, but listening to Live at Earls Court, you’d think his latest songs were some of his best, sitting comfortably next to Smiths classics like “Big Mouth Strikes Again.”

This is a hell of a record.

There is little doubt that Silent Alarm is stellar, worthy of the praise it has received.

It’s amazing to see how the Decemberists have grown. The songs from their first EP, 5 Songs, seem like a man and an acoustic guitar, where Picaresque feels like a full blown orchestra.

Different and perhaps more mature than S.T.R.E.E.T. D.A.D., this recent release from Out Hud measures out a liquid pulse, fervently paying homage to their antecedents and feverishly shaking their asses.

Where Songs for the Deaf found the perfect middle ground between aggressive rocking licks and experimental flourishes, Lullabies falls to the experimental side.

Hill’s disc captures everything that’s easy to hate about Hella.... Seim’s album, on the other hand, is easily the most fully-realized work to bear the Hella name.

Some of the tracks may be fun, but The Best Little Secrets Are Kept is little more than mindlessness parading as innovation.

This will definitely please the archivist fan of Cave and the Bad Seeds and intrigue everyone else. [Avg of grades of 7, 8, and 9 for the three discs.]

Black Dialogue: a hip-hop classic? Maybe not, but pretty damn close.

A sprawling tour de force... It overwhelms you with its brawny rhythms, its artful arrangements and foggy atmosphere, and its thrilling instrumentation.

Kaiser Chiefs manage find their footing early on and this success forgives them their meanderings later on the disc.

Superbly imaginative for someone still considered a "lad."

Exquisite Corpse does little to expand upon Daedelus’ aesthetic; it does, however, explore the hip-hop direction that he’s been moving towards in his collaborative work more thoroughly than any of his previous efforts.

Farina and MacKaye have created a delicate and beautiful masterpiece that transcends their punk and post-punk routes.

Although the mid-record change in direction provides breathing space, it begs the question whether the album was truly in need of any.

Whoa, is it ever tough, but wow, is it ever great.

It's a brutal record that changes you the same way prison changes a man.

Set Yourself on Fire is a release of unexpected dimensions.