Questionable sequencing and some strange production choices (layers of synths and suffocating syntheric strings) sometimes make Jordan sound like a guest artist o her own album. [Jun 2026, p.86]

This follow-up is more considered, though occasionally suffers from one too many mid-paced hard rock standards. [Feb 2017, p.90]

The results sound authentic, melodic '60s girl-pop, if a bit thin. [Feb 2019, p.93]

Unbalanced and unrelenting, it's a fascinating album, if difficult to enjoy. [Apr 2013, p.90]

Minimalist of palette it may be, but Laraaji's characteristic approach to melody, harmony and rhythm, at once both charmingly childlike and spiritually ecstatic, is present throughout. [Aug 2020, p.87]

It's a steady, comforting blast of warmth, from the Jon Hopkins-Style soft techno pulse of Soft Gradient beckons to Nocturne's ambient swell. [Aug 2025, p.79]

The songs barely disturb the dust in the room as they gently tip-toe about, Millan's lazy drawl far less deliberate than the clipped enunciation she often exercises on Stars' chamber pop. [Feb 2010, p. 102]

Sweet Apple rock it up in gonzo mid-'70s style, with lashings of glam and powerpop. [June 2010, p. 93]

Ultimately proves hard to get a handle on. [Jul 2015, p.96]

It's hard to imagine CRB ever re-inventing the wheel, but boy do they know how to roll. [Sep 2016, p.96]

Heavy on atmosphere, but candid and brave also. [Aug 2015, p.98]

There is genius in here... [but] Shangri-La does sometimes drift into lazily delivered Knopfler history lessons. [Nov 2004, p.96]

Allowing Talk Talk, The Chameleons and David Sylvian to swell the ranks of recognisable names and the odd mystifying entry too - on what planet is The Wake's English rain ethereal, dream pop or showgaze? [May 2023, p.98]

After nine songs averaging under four minutes, Moore closes with The Realization, 10 minutes of converging light and dark, and one of the finest piece of music that he has put his name to. [Apr 2022, p.84]

Recorded remotely, Distractions is febrile and modern but cries out for a through-line. [Mar 2021, p.88]

Though it’s not the recluse’s reverie that was 2020’s fine single-hander Monovision, Long Way Home also feels somewhat introverted. [Sep 2024, p.86]

More euphoric indie fits and starts from Hooray For Earth's Noel Heroux. [Mar 2016, p.100]

The air of gentle rustic drama is enhanced by discreet flourishes of trumpet, vibraphone, bowed banjo, amplified kalimba and quartz singing bowl. [Mar 2008, p.113]

They return with an eleventh album on which they seem to have distilled every good idea into these 14 short, smart songs. [Sep 2008, p.106]

Marnie Stern is a strong statement from a musician whose confidence is soaring. [Dec 2010, p.97]

The whole album suggests the assured songwriting will in time be matched by the sloughing-off of any nods to the familiar. One to keep a beady eye on. [Aug 2019, p.96]

The cumulative effect is effortlessly gorgeous, if a little smoothed out compared to the variety and tension of the last two albums. [Sep 2016, p.96]

While on occasion disappointingly heavy handed, the more wistful moments shine through the murk. [Nov 2002, p.105]

There's not much here to rival very top Tull but then nothing that sullies the venerable brand either. [Feb 2022, p.83]

Cheatah's emotional core is easily decipherable. [Dec 2015, p.94]

At turns comforting and disturbing. [Apr 2020, p.95]

There are plenty of twisty turns, and more than a dollop of cynicism and cheek, to ensure that this latest comeback earns its rightful place in the CVB canon. [Apr 2013, p.90]

Out on its own, Here We Go Magic demands attention. [Aug 2009, p.108]