[A] breezy conflation of Beta Band-esque jollity, default indie guitar chime and High Llamas-style retro melody. [May 2003, p.95]

Sleepy, certainly, but never tired. [Aug 2004, p.89]

Their raucous, raw live show transfers effortlessly to record, justifying all three of those exclamation marks. [Jun 2004, p.116]

She's lost track of almost everything that made her music marvellous. [Jun 2004, p.101]

A superior folk-tinged brand of MOR. [Oct 2005, p.102]

Hayden's delicate little songs are potent, precious things indeed. [Oct 2004, p.110]

An oddly experimental record, prioritising texture over tune and betraying a river-deep confessioinal streak. [Apr 2004, p.103]

Improved fidelity aside, the song remains the same. [Aug 2004, p.88]

A Grand… isn't as immediate and vivacious as its predecessor. But credit to Skinner for pushing things forward; he remians one of the most compelling voices in British pop culture. [May 2004, p.94]

Those who have grown up with him will find much to love here. [May 2004, p.90]

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

True, [Merritt] still sings in a voice that's subject to fairly strict demarcations of range and malleability, but his deft spadework in the trench of song-craft more than compensates. [May 2004, p.93]

Los Lobos' ingenuity with arrangements and atmosphere makes The Ride something special. [Jun 2004, p.102]

With elements of synth-pop, new wave and blue-eyed soul distilled into a succession of heart-beating hits, Trial Of The Century is a record that gets better with each listen. [Dec 2004, p.99]

Their debut, Mono, gave voice to little beyond their frustration, and the distance between that impressively venomous fit of black-hearted flailing and Penance Soiree's stereopathic, multiphonic attack is similar to that between Nirvana's Bleach and Nevermind. [May 2004, p.94]

An album of lightness and substance, in perfectly observed amounts. [Oct 2005, p.114]

A nearly flawless set of left-field folk. [Jun 2004, p.106]

A remarkable comeback. [Jun 2004, p.106]

Dreamily exploratory, but rooted in pop. [Apr 2004, p.102]

His songwriting has rarely sounded so acute. [Apr 2004, p.109]

To dismiss Heroes to Zeroes as a mere exercise in rock homage underestimates The Beta Band's charm. [Apr 2004, p.102]

In a way, Trampin' is to this decade what Horses was to the '70s: a repudiation of its time, and the promise of a way forward. [Apr 2004, p.98]

It really is incredibly good, even if sometimes it's hard to feel you're hearing the real Jolie and not a character she's adopted. [Jun 2004, p.110]

Starts strong and finishes weak, but it's forgivable considering the gems contained in this 12-song set. [May 2004, p.97]

The longer the album runs the more engaging the songs seem to become. [May 2004, p.104]

Lynn's voice... is as strong as it was during her heyday, while her songwriting ability has only increased with age. [Jun 2004, p.98]

Brilliantly produced and performed, rather than astoundingly well written. [Jun 2004, p.112]

Forget notions of old or new schools: this is an album that blends a kindergarten-level technique with styles that are strictly postgraduate. [Jun 2004, p.116]