A beautifully dark masterpiece. [#56, p.99]

By keeping it simple, Bowie has avoided the stupid, said more with less and made the clearest record of his career. [#61, p.88]

A rewarding, cohesive and climactic experience. [#54, p.88]

This attention-grabbing sophomore grower beckons with a wicked lick. [No. 106, p.55]

An endearing solo effort with a higher percentage of hits to misses than 2003's My Room Is A Mess. [#75, p.96]

While Femi's flame doesn't burn quite as strong as his dad's, the Kuti family still holds the belt as reigning champs of Afrobeat. [No. 100, p.55]

This latest offering carries an overwhelming feeling of desperation. [No. 139, p.53]

Taken all in one sitting, the dashing Mole City is both way too much and way too little. [No. 103, p.60]

It's a serious-minded, dramatic record, dressed up with strings, marimba and reverb-soaked guitars. [No. 109, p.60]

Taut, catchy songs ripe with beginner's pluck. [#71, p.105]

The band's flair for drama comes to the forefront on the "be My Baby"--quoting "Algiers" and intensely epic closer "These Sticks." [No. 108, p.53]

Calder never strains, never belts it out; she finds her sweet spot and reveals in all album long. [No. 119, p.53]

The quartet has reached puberty on its second album, which sees the band embracing awkward teen angst a la Winona Ryder's character in Beatlejuice. [No. 96, p.61]

It's hard to ignore that the arrangements feel like templates. [No. 107, p.55]

While another updating of Bloodrock/Blue Cheer/proto-metal is exactly what the world doesn't need, it's a different story when Electric Wizard puts such source material in the crosshairs to show the saturated margins how it's done. [No. 149, p.55]

A tasteful restraint envelops the album, continuing the musical maturation of both its performer and producer. [No. 111, p.61]

IX strips down the layers and offers walls of noise, but cushions the blow with moody interludes. [No. 116, p.53]

Occasionally struggling to balance style with substance, Gardner nonetheless makes Hypnophobia much more than just an exercise in sonic adventurism. [No. 120, p.55]

The songs are as dense and atmospheric as we've come to expect. [No. 126, p.55]

Pretty and pleasant without ever being especially compelling. [#67, p.100]

A phenomenal recording of sonic and lyrical depth. [#53, p.69]

There's no mistaking this unpredictable, lovingly tended aural scenery for anything else. [No. 144, p.53]

Its wide-open sound is full of giant guitars, processed keyboards and retro beats, suggesting a meeting between Lee Hazelwood and Ennio Morricone at the Brill Building. [No. 141, p.57]

As with his main gig Ex-Cult, Shaw’s detuned, smoke-trailing vocals are the runaway engine to which this crazy train is hitched. [No. 133, p.57]

Fans will find nothing to object to. [#67, p.102]

Wilson is brilliant and creative yet hindered by his own expansive eclecticism and purple prose. [No. 150, p.61]

As If offers something close to perfection, as far as !!! goes. [No. 125, p.52]

The LP is an unpredictable and often euphoric collection with plenty to, well, love. [Fall 2007, p.90]