The Wallflowers make some of the best radio-friendly hooks and melodies around. [Mar 2003, p.112]

When it works, it's genuinely exciting, but too often the brave retro-futuristic collision is neither fish nor fowl. [Jul 2013, p.82]

Jared Artaud and Brian MacFadyen pack a pummeling version of cultural vacancy, though they're a tad predictable. [Sep 2014, p.93]

It's Shabason's sax that endures; pensive and humane, even when assailed by glitches. [Dec 2018, p.92]

Each track employs a different variation on a naïve, early Depeche Mode synth-pop beat, over which a keyboard melody bloops and Dury whispers forlornly about a missed romantic opportunity or existential let-down. [Nov 2014, p.92]

Weighty subtexts and a consistent mood of restrained portent haven't entirely banished the aforementioned arpeggiated banality here, however, which is a shame, because in places Heather gives rein to an otherwise repressed idiosyncrasy. [May 2022, p.94]

There are tender moments, too, such as Lianne La Havas’s guest-spot on sodium-lit ballad Body Shock, but this is largely a record of brash textures from a band relishing the margins. [Jan 2025, p.83]

This third outing developed a gnarly carpe diem edge. [Mar 2017, p.94]

Like families, it's appealingly chaotic. [Apr 2016, p.96]

Moon ultimately suffers from a surfeit of wistful syrup. [Feb 2014, p.95]

The Stills still aren't sure of their true identity, but at least those Interpol comparisons are way behind them. [Jan 2008, p.101

These 11 songs brim with images of armed men, noxious air and entitled egotists, intermingled with notions of self-liberation and community solidarity. But the sonics too often seem stuck in Garbus's past. [Jul 2025, p.83]

While Foreign Light trades some of his past eclecticism for a super-soulful hook-up with singer-songwriter Andrea martin, his acute ear for sasquatch basslines and simpatico collaborators remains undimmed. [Sep 2017, p.91]

It's difficult to judge on one listen. [May 2006, p.104]

Beck-assisted psychedelic electronica from Black Moth Super Rainbowman. [July 2010, p. 98]

Many longtime listeners... are sure to be disappointed with the radio-friendly production and sheer innocuousness of [the] lyrics. [Jun 2007, p.104]

Beginners is less rip-it-up statement than subtle realignment; less countrified and polished, more folky and sparse. [Jul 2020, p.80]

Muezzin duels with fellow tenorist Shabaka Hutchings hit the spot. [Jun 2016, p.97]

The Detroit budget-punks follow last year's eponymous art-scuzz by zinging through 12 anthemic amp-melters in 26 minutes. [Feb 2011, p.989]

Occasionally it's dull - but the mood's upbeat where it once was ominous. [Apr 2023, p.83]

There are featureless patches, bits of white-box real-estate that need a little more character, but there's always something intriguing around V's corners. [Apr 2023, p.89]

Rosenberg's gently-rendered songs too often rely on stock images. [Oct 2016, p.96]

It's a more than worthy companion piece, with an unfinished, scrapbook feel that's far from unbecoming. [Sep 2014, p.94]

A playful digital makeover for some vintage noir vibes. [Oct 2020, p.94]

The gap between theoretical mind-blowing freakout and actual indie underpinnings remains acute, however, as Venusia and Valley Of The Calm Trees suggest Klaxons may just be Mansun with a faster processor. [Sep 2010, p.103]

Empire State Bastard make you feel like you've been in a cage fight with Mike Tyson. [Oct 2023, p.82]

Regularly transcend mere pastiche. [Apr 2020, p.86]

Just a quick read of the titles on this 12th album shows Chuck has lost none of his sloganeering, rebal-rousing wit. [Oct 2007, p.106]