It's a beautifully rounded affair though--sometimes elegiac, at others uplifting, no matter how dark its heart. [Dec 2008, p.112]

Clever-innocent, it's a bit Cerys Matthews, a bit Bow Wow Wow... minus the tunes and larger-than-life character to get stuck into. [Dec. 2011 pg. 94]

The most focused and exciting White Solo record yet, a precision-tooled digital reconfiguration of his rock bona fides. [May 2022, p.89]

Bad Religion see no reason to mess with the formula. [Feb 2013, p.98]

The surface of Another One is pure pleasure; underneath, it's not quite so easy. [Sep 2015, p.90]

It's recognisably the same band, but lower key, less structured, a set of soundscapes rather than songs, and sometimes almost gothic in its mood. [Mar 2003, p.97]

It's perhaps a tad effortful here and there, but it's gloriously impolite. [Apr 2004, p.113]

Death Cab weave together smartly taut guitars with vivid observational lyrics to create perfectly crafted pop songs, stunning in their simplicity and beauty. [Apr 2002, p.96]

The higher production values simply water down R.L.'s natural vigour. [Jan 2001, p. 103]

What this record lacks is a couple of the screamalong anthems at which Muse have become renowned. [Aug 2006, p.88]

[It] burns with pop ambition. [Feb 2007, p.105]

The Jets sound cohesive and settled but losing their saucer-eyed charm can't help but make them a less mesmerising alternative to the competition. [Apr 2008, p.114]

This is spare, emotionally charged piano music which always errs toward the melodic side of melancholy. [Mar 2010, p.99]

Whenever he lays down his licks atop the bed he's made, there's never any doubt that this is a Pat Metheny record. One of his better ones, too. [Mar 2010, p.101]

The sweetness of its sun-kissed textures and playful melodies mark out El Turista as his best work since 2005's near flawless "Nashville." [Apr 2010, p.98]

Hitchcock's attempt to create a "Basement Tapes" vibe churns up a clutch of affable songs but he looks to have saved his best material for the near contempoary "Ole! Tarantula." [Apr 2010, p.103]

Hopscotching from arrhythmic electronica to brutal DJ Shadow-style sonic assault and back again, it's a final demonstration that at last Stateless have arrived somewhere they can happily call home. [Mar 2011, p.98]

With the excellent Roots backing her, she recasts many of the dominant black music sounds of 30 or so years ago on a set of songs which address concerns that are clearly in the here-and-now. [Aug 2012, p.92]

This epic finally reveals his personal vision in all its frenetic glory. [Aug 2012, p.94]

It's as commercial as it gets but works purely because the Quin girls have fashioned with good tunes that come replete with more than enough hooks to keep everyone happy. [Mar 2013, p.88]

Any of these versions would brighten Radio 2's day, but eventually the massed violins and mid-paced tempos begin to pall. [May 2013, p.88]

Razor-sharp production, lazy lolloping dance grooves and a polished, poppy glow lends the debut from Essex producer Tythe more than a hint of anything goes, '80s Balearic sheen. [Sep 2013, p.95]

Not exactly a collection of lullabies, this is still some of the most achingly beautiful music released yet under the Jesu name. [Dec 2013, p.89]

This, their literally titled second, is equally arresting [as their debut]. [Apr 2013, p.94]

Cohen’s sound checks, as lengthy as the shows, where he’d experiment with old songs and try out new ones, were celebrated by insiders, and the three examples here are among the highlights: a remarkable Field Commander Cohen, like a four-and-a-half-minute operetta; a cover of George Jones’ Choices (gorgeous fiddle); and a new Cohen original, up-tempo blues Got A Little Secret.

Their big sound has a wide sonic palette, from the spacey keyboards of Honeytrap to the baroque strings and synths of Sunny, but there are some less inspired moments. [Oct 2015, p.91]

If Watneys Red Barrel-flavoured stompers like Roll The Balls, Watch Your Step and Bonehead Waltz are something you'd dig, this is definitely for you. [Feb 2016, p.98]

An album in glorious hock to improvisation, rhythm and texture. [Mar 2016, p.95]