In every sense, committed rock'n'roll. [Jul 2005, p.105]

Mostly, it works. [Aug 2005, p.102]

No duffers here, never a dull moment, satisfaction guaranteed. [Jul 2005, p.100]

An intriguing labyrinth of idiosyncrasies. [Jun 2005, p.110]

Richly textured percussion, thrumming nylon-string guitars, discreet electronics and sundry guest vocalists. [Jul 2005, p.105]

There's little real sense of progression here... and at times New Order sound dreary and ordinary. [May 2005, p.96]

It isn't until the latter half of the album... that they find their own voice, and one that delivers deliciously sugary powerpop. [Aug 2005, p.102]

A DIY epic whose brief sorties into often spellbinding instrumental territory are pitstops in which to muse upon profound, touching or witty lyrics. [May 2005, p.95]

[A] consistently crafted and stimulating set. [Jun 2005, p.100]

[An] alarming intimacy is the bedrock of Devils & Dust. [Jun 2005, p.92]

Not exactly a comfortable listen, but Darnielle's candour can't be faulted. [Jun 2005, p.109]

Smith's best, most satisfying album to date. [Mar 2005, p.106]

She indulges her mystical side to mesmerising effect. [Dec 2005, p.100]

An album of abundant, aberrant fun. [May 2005, p.102]

Evokes a sense that this has all been done before, and better.

Backed by an ace band... he's back in familiar territory. [May 2005, p.109]

Garishly attractive. [Oct 2005, p.98]

They come across as a self-contained, insular studio band, with tunes aching to break free of the driving wall of guitars. [May 2005, p.96]

[A] dazzling selection of pop songs. [Aug 2005, p.96]

This is special, many-layered stuff. [May 2005, p.108]

Walks the same Cold War-era Bowery streets as Interpol but is not more than a half step away from lysergic brilliance. [May 2005, p.108]

The album... is one of such remarkable beauty. [Oct 2004, p.96]

Less chaotic and parochial, more serene and accessible, but no less magical. [May 2005, p.96]

While [it] lacks the glitterball dazzle of Emerge, its many-coloured moods result in bankable Moroder moments, baroque ballads, and an ECG-blowing cover of Boredoms' O.

There are so many tricks twirling for your attention that the effect is a little like wearing all your clothes at once. [Jun 2005, p.100]

There's not a single weak link on this excellent record. [Aug 2005, p.100]

Their most primitive, intimate and vocally oriented [album] yet. [May 2005, p.108]

Imagine a 'luded-out Eagles fronted by a dying hillbilly and you'll only be mildly disappointed. [Jun 2005, p.105]

She's right back on track with this terrific debut for Capitol. [Jun 2005, p.110]

Fans will wallow in the superficial nuttiness of it all--though profound issues underlie the wilful eccentricity. [Mar 2005, p.96]

Far from being a doomfest, the music is quite beautiful. [Oct 2005, p.114]

While there are enough inspiring moments on here to suggest Beck hasn't yet run out of ideas, it demonstrates that the best way for him to revisit former triumphs would be to travel somewhere new. [Apr 2005, p.92]

Fierce, minimalistic but defiantly pop-sensible hard rock. [Apr 2005, p.88]

This is a swaggering, unashamedly fun pop record. [May 2005, p.94]

If it has a fault, it is that its relentlessly innovative music can overshadow often superlative lyrics. [Apr 2005, p.102]

Mozzer [is] in excellent voice. [May 2005, p.96]

There's a confident, liberated spirit at play. [May 2005, p.95]

Arular's irresistible blend of crafty refugee chic and subversive digital skipping rhymes will do very nicely for the moment. [Jun 2005, p.108]

This is a terrific ride. [Apr 2005, p.88]

Ambitious in scope and abundantly stocked with viral melody, Silent Alarm is hugely impressive--flawed certainly... but nonetheless blessed with outbreaks of great flair. [Mar 2005, p.100]

Shave Devil's Playground of nine tracks and repackage it as an EP and it could conceivably be the comeback of the year. [Apr 2005, p.98]

A slightly muted, at times infuriatingly uneven, but ultimately rewarding collection. [Apr 2005, p.89]

It's unfortunate that the weedy vocals dilute some of its impact, otherwise this would be a triumph. [Apr 2005, p.89]

Fruitful collaborations... invite the listener to keep that dial locked, despite the odd distracting lapse into free-form digital static. [Jul 2005, p.112]

This is not a Big Rock Record. Instead it's intimate, multi-layered and uplifting. [Apr 2005, p.86]

Cold yet compulsive. [Jun 2005, p.106]

Frisell's braided guitar work creates a complex, nocturnal mood, while Parks' weeping accordion and sweeping string arrangements heighten the inherent drama. [May 2005, p.104]

Alas, when their feisty glam racket starts to repeat itself towards the end, the joke wears a little thin. [Nov 2005, p.112]

An aptly schizophrenic alternative history. [May 2005, p.114]

The core remains Roberts' discomfitingly pure way with diction. [May 2005, p.109]

By the time the album ends in a full-on industrial free-jazz freakout you'll either be totally lost or suspecting this man might be a genius. [Jun 2005, p.97]

On all these fabulous tales, Gira's voice remains reassuringly salty. [May 2005, p.106]

Gorgeously sweaty in its simplicity. [May 2005, p.103]

Not their masterpiece, but a sizeable effort nonetheless. [Apr 2006, p.100]

[It] is largely unfettered by the dictates of genre. [Jul 2006, p.106]

As a rough cut solo exercise, Rhys has delivered a blinder. [Feb 2005, p.102]

Some of it is tough and unforgiving... and some is pure pop plastique. [Apr 2005, p.89]

Smelts the classic rock canon (Madness, Blur, Bowie, Small Faces) into an infectious, head-spinning punch. [May 2005, p.109]

Breathtaking moments, brilliant tunes, and Breakdown, a genuinely Beatles-league pop hit. [Nov 2004, p.114]

Brings a little focus--and some memorable tunes--to the proceedings, though Wolf's muse remains doggedly eclectic. [May 2005, p.108]

Green sounds in his element. [Apr 2005, p.100]

Reveals another eclectic, kaleidoscopic world. [May 2005, p.106]

[An] almost equal measure of intriguing and tiresome music. [Jun 2005, p.108]

This is their best album in 65 years. [May 2005, p.94]

Retains the gum-tingling pop harmonies and guitar-throttling riffs of previous albums, but their reedy punk sinew has swollen into rock muscle. [Jun 2004, p.112]

Takes the most accessible aspects of the house-soaked, pre-Britpop scene and crafts a swaggering debut that places songwriting suss firmly above pointless posturing. [Oct 2004, p.97]

An agreeably bittersweet album. [Mar 2005, p.101]

Her textured roar means even the less melodic songs have traction. [May 2005, p.103]

Its claustrophobia is total, unique, spellbinding. [Mar 2005, p.106]

It's a little hard to take in one sitting, though downcast fans of Saint Etienne and The Magnetic Fields will find much to adore. [Sep 2005, p.92]

Sadly, the songs are less noticeable than the urge to strangle the drummer. [Mar 2005, p.101]

Listen to Frances The Mute without any prog-induced prejudice... and it emerges as the triumphant sound of a band bound only by their imagination. [Apr 2005, p.86]

It finds the group's estimable strengths consolidated as never before. [Jun 2005, p.112]

A rare feat: gentle and kind without becoming soppy or daft. [May 2005, p.109]

For all the band's rich resonance, she shines brightest when [producer Colin] Cripps holds the kilowatts. [May 2005, p.98]

A preposterous, highly-entertaining return. [Apr 2005, p.104]

I know which post-millennial album I'll add to the Atlantic, Bell and gospel classics. [Apr 2005, p.96]

There are a few weak links... but there's a melodic buoyancy here. [Mar 2005, p.106]

There's a freshness uncommon to fortysomething men two decades into their career. [Oct 2004, p.110]

An unexpectedly weird bolt from the blue, an ultimately outstanding crack at brokering an accord between spiky noo wave and fuzzy '70s stoner rock. [Nov 2004, p.116]

A rarefied exemplar of genteel bliss. [May 2005, p.108]

She keeps the mood focused and the music softly funky. [Mar 2005, p.92]

Transistor Radio's songs do lack the shirtfront-clenching grip of Ward's Transfiguration of Vincent set. But shapeless and misty atmospherics have their shadowy power too. [Mar 2005, p.92]

[A] queasy mix of super-sharp realism, clammy surrealism and elegant melody. [Feb 2005, p.98]

Barzelay's eye for quirky detail and ear for delicious melody keeps a nice balance to things. [Jun 2005, p.105]

A veritable treasure trove of electro-bubblegum, irresistible punk-funk, and hypnotic noise experiments. [Mar 2005, p.116]

It's a soundtrack for rainswept, sodium-lit backstreets. [Feb 2005, p.101]

It intrigues more than satisfies. [Apr 2005, p.100]

It's a few tracks too long, but it's easy to get lost in its smoked-out haze. [Apr 2005, p.89]

Makes for some striking textures. [Apr 2005, p.97]

Many of these sessions trump the original album versions. [Mar 2005, p.100]

Scales new heights of bong-loaded majesty. [May 2005, p.108]

Looting a Smithsy guitar line for Winter In The Hamptons or aping Steve McQueen-era Prefab Sprout on My Love Has Gone momentarily lifts Rouse's gloom, but it is scant relief from the stillness at Nashville's core. [Mar 2005, p.106]

Inescapably, Losing My Edge is the best thing here, yet happily Murphy has more than one trick up his stylish sleeve. [Feb 2005, p.101]

As eloquent an emotional discourse as [Gedge] has mustered. [Mar 2005, p.101]

There's a slow-burning moodiness... together with a new directness. [Mar 2005, p.101]

A workout for both mind and soul. [Jun 2005, p.97]

A Healthy Distrust turns his scouring insight upon America's turbulent recent history, the response of a vulnerable, impassioned, imperfect man. [Mar 2005, p.106]