In merging the intimate with the majestic, The Kissaway Trail have achieved a rare, and subtle, balance. [Apr 2010, p.92]

At times things get wincingly experimental; but mostly, it's claustrophobic and deeply magnetic. [Aug 2017, p.96]

Toweringly camp singles like the slinky Perfect World and an album to enjoy on shuffle. [Jun 2012, p.92]

Keeps a glossy electropop trajectory, but there's a precarious tilt to the shoegazing rush of Do You Still Believe In Me? or the startling heartbroken lyrics of Dolphins. [Feb 2026, p.87]

No Treasure But Hope is further refinement of what they've been doing in the past. [Dec 2019, p.89]

Overjoyed suggest not only Half Japanese's own past abut also the pre-Television, Richard Hell-overshadowed Neon Boys. [Oct 2014, p.89]

All intriguing and unique, but as the concluding third settles into shapeless moodiness, Hesitation Marks could've done with some pruning. [Oct 2013, p.87]

As an experiment in revisionism, the results are mixed. [Nov 2012, p.85]

Leeds psych-metal quintet sound suitably grinding and progressive. [Dec 2014, p.102]

It doesn't always land, but the DJ Shadow-esque glitch-hop of Peak Again- with Low's Alan Sparhawk on vocals - reflect James's desire to conquer new territories. [Jun 2026, p.93]

A moonstruck Frankenstein builds percussive layers, then juxtaposes classical, opera and jazz samples in shadowy odes to the night. [Mar 2020, p.96]

The "sonically exploratory" nature of Hurley occasionally serves Weezer's boredom threshold better than it does the songs. [Nov 2010, p.103]

Notwithstanding the occasional banjo and flute intrusion, in essence this remains flamboyant, '60s-tinged guitar pop, forever poised equidistant between accessibility and inscrutability. [Apr 2015, p.93]

Bouncy production keep things light; Pharrell-ish Feel It Still, soulful So Young; but perhaps too light. [Jul 2017, p.96]

There's little obvious mind expansion in these long-haired ruminations on modern living, but Rose Windows still have the power to lift listeners far out of the everyday. [Jun 2015, p.92]

While her writing is often flattened by the ungainly toil of navvying away for the Big Idea, the flame of toriamosness burns through at times. [Nov 2002, p.114]

The set includes some tender spots, but dire wins the day. Thankfully, it's on occasion leavened. [Feb 2018, p.94]

Ranaldo and Refree are content to leave holes throughout, letting sounds do the most interesting work, nestling or scraping together. [Apr 2020, p.94]

Anyone turned off by conspiracy theories may shudder, but allow Brown his free-your-mind gnostic-in-designer-streetwear stance and entertainment wins out. [Mar 2019, p.88]

At their best, as in 'Sometimes,' they drag you into their circling obsessiveness and measured rhetoric. But, too often, Yoav's cleverness feels calculating--unless it's the reverse that, over-tasked. [May 2008]

No one's about to mistake them for Sonic Youth, but the sheen of easy listening has been stripped away, and they sound all the better for it. [Oct 2008, p.110]

The songs often begin like standards then vanish beneath noise creeping in from the sides. .... Before the music returns to the foreground, triumphant. [Aug 2025, p.83]

The fourth LP is blisteringly confident as the band evolves toward maturity. [May 2015, p.94]

The results is mixed, but at times instinctive and powerful. [Apr 2010, p.93]

It's a judicious match-up. [Jun 2018, p.96]

A welcome departure. [Jun 2004, p.114]

This joyous, head-spinning dash to beyond the end of the yellow brick road audaciously fuses the chamber chorale, folk, the theatrical and torch song to create an album which could soundtrack a cabaret hosted by the Wizard of Oz himself. [Sep 2016, p.98]

Short it may be, but Happenings is full of ideas. [Aug 2024, p.83]