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

While much here errs toward vanilla and cheese, delectably idiosyncratic morsels are also on the menu. [Dec 2018, p.100]

The tune count is down and it's sometimes a little too Mr. Motivator, but these sonic smiles can still be infectious. [Oct 2007, p.106]

Her alternately husky and tremulous Dolly Parton timbre weaves through a yacht rock/mid-'80s Fleetwood Mac hybrid (Spirit), a Eurovision-worthy almost power-ballad (Right Now) and the quasi-disco, gospel-edged shuffler Baby. [Apr 2025, p.80]

Whether Liam Gallagher's band is the start of a new story or a diverting subplot to an on-going saga remains to be seen -- and you can imagine where the smart money lies. [Mar. 2011, p. 92]

Get To Heaven feels both like a band at the peak of their powers and self-consciously dialing everything up to 11 before things go up in flames. [Jul 2015, p.90]

[Amy Winehouse had] something compelling, human and wonderful, and it surfaces just enough on this compilation to make it worthy of her name. [Jan 2012, p.91]

He [Luke Younger] has blended ghost-echoes of dub, techno, and house to oddly sounding effect. [Aug 2015, p.95]

His pieces are mostly drawn from moderns such as Cage, Gorecki, Barber, Satie and Ravel, and work best when mined for their luxuriant melancholy...

They can't always resist their old ways, as autumn processional PPP shows, but Legrand's vocals feel sweeter and closer. [Sep 2015, p.87]

American Life is revealing and diverting -- no bad things in a record -- but in the end the brow-beating, finger-wagging and psycho-babbling take their toll. [May 2003, p.86]

Trouble is they're embalmed within a high-gloss, synth-heavy production that sounds like '80s LA soft rock. [Sep 2014, p.98]

The covers format doesn't facilitate too much untamed Scabies (sadly), but Brian himself poignantly appears on The Last Time. [Mar 2026, p.81]

Soft Error's background in film and TV composition is the foundation for the opulent, operatic electronica on Mechanism. [Feb 2017, p.95]

They offer up a wonderful lysergic carousel of communal singalongs, spiked pop and tribal hoedowns. [Nov 2007, p.95]

Mavis tries to stamp authority on songs written by ward's musician pals.... They're not all great though--neither the Charity Rose or Nick Cave contributions hit the spot. [Mar 2016, p.99]

It's an uneven but at times wonderfully eccentric mix of early-'80s synth-pop mores and a kind of post-industrial electro that wants to sound like Depeche Mode but then wants to get all nasty on you. [Dec 2013, p.98]

Nurses aren't the undead, but Dracula has staying power. [Nov 2011, p.98]

Its highlights peaking above those of its predecessor even if the quality of the often plasticky beats means it's a little more uneven. [Nov 2008, p.108]

After the initial shock, the pair's songwriting smarts cuts through persuasively, alongside strong messaging about acknowledging your needs and vulnerabilities. [Feb 2024, p.88]

Things dip slightly in the middle when Jackson's reedy vocals are exposed against a mid-tempo backing, but it's a minor quibble. [Jul 2009, p.98]

A winsome, nostalgic atmosphere. [Jul 2017, p.91]

For all her professed preference for slower, gothically-inclined blues, it's old-time rippers like Sometimes There's Blood or land speed banjo record attempt, Oh, Command Me Lord!, where she really excels--and, critically, excites.[Aug 2018, p.88]

Some of its best moments, including Savannah's rolling, tumbling Lynard Skynyrd-style grooves, are steeped in '70s Americana. Others, though, are distinctly so-so. [Dec 2020, p.86]

The hefty production complements a moody selection of songs about bullying, Italian Soccer and1960s London. [Jul 2014, p.93]

There's still much to link the group to their musical past. [Jun 2004, p.107]

Ayers is a lovely singer in both English and Spanish; he rather less so on the London homage It's Another Night or the gently barbed I've Never Had A Good Time.... In Paris. When they harmonise on Room At The Top, though, they're a joy. [Jun 2023, p.89]

Stylistically, the album juxtaposes grungy art rock with punk-jazz, electronica, and hip-hop, though it's McCaslin's tenor sax and aesthetic vision that imbues Blow. with a sense of unity and coherence. [Nov 2018, p.95]