The pace is relentlessly uptempo, but the sheer feisty spirit and conviction with which it is delivered ultimately brooks no argument. [Feb 2008, p.102]

This is unlikely to expand thier fanbase, but The Mars Volta are making music built to last. [Feb 2008, p.113]

Most tracks are sophisticated, jazzy pop songs and ballads about relationships, but the angry young man of yore occasionally peeps over the parapet. [Feb 2008, p.102]

With Keep Your Eyes Ahead Brandon Summers and Benjamin Weikel have pushed their fringes out of the way to display a new focus. [Mar 2008, p.112]

Such a bad idea. Such a stunning result. [Mar 2008, p.114]

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]

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]

The gleeful exuberance of Hey Venus! finds the band refreshed.... If Hey Venus! lacks anything, it's the thumping-heart centerpiece that made SFA's early records so special. [Sep 2007, p.108]

The punk grooves of 'Laugh Track' or 'Seeing Hands' and the near-perfect Phnom Pehn pop of 'Mr. Orange' or "Monsoon Of Perfume' bookend a set that grows in strength with each play. [Feb 2008, p.110]

In The Future showcases a group who knows exactly what they're doing. [Feb 2008, p.101]

Not even Cat Power can turn an album of cover versions into anything more than a facinating detour from the main journey, but Jukebox is a precious waste of time nonetheless. [Jan 2008, p.98]

The Truckers have always been a direct band but this time there's a kind of foreplay, where each song gives the other time and consideration. [Mar 2008, p.100]

It makes poetic sense but, like many autobiographical songwriters, he knows the stories so well he fails to tell them. [Feb 2008, p.112]

The sudden shifts between smooth/jarring and soft/hard make for an uncomfortable but compelling ride. [Mar 2008, p.113]

Ther are moments of greatness, opening track 'Spit at the Stars' for one, though mostly it's pained adolescent observations about missing you already which doesn't cut it in the big adult world. [Oct 2007, p.92]

It exudes an organic, direct feel from which it gains its considerable charm. [Feb 2008, p.112]

It's faux-naif orch-pop that crashes and thunders. [Feb 2008, p.108]

Generally, the undistinguished R&B pop and trite lyrics he and his long-term bandmates come up with bear no comparison to the salty good cheer of 'It Don't Come Easy' and 'Photograph.' [Feb 2008, p.100]

Angels Of Destruction continues a rich tradition forged in the bars of their hometowns. [Feb 2008, p.105]

Sprawling and dense as it may be, but amid its deranged lyricism and brutal soundscapes, 8 Diagrams vindicates The RZA's devotion to the collective ethic. [Feb 2008, p.100]

An alternative greatest hits compilation, it proves that the old sound of tomorrow can still make the grade today. [Dec 2007, p.100]

Jean's sonic scope is breathtaking, complemented by imaginative lyrics. [Dec 2007, p.102]

The idea remains more brilliant than the performance can hope to be; because Wainwright is very good but Judy ia unassailable. [Feb 2008, p.98]

Another impressive cocktail of Eastern-inflected drones, mantra-like vocals and thick slabs of empyrean noise guitar. [Dec 2007, p.100]

Unsurprisingly for a 2D project, it's all a little flat. [Dec 2007, p.121]

The rethink has paid dividends. [Nov 2007, p.90]

Every so often an album comes along that's so original it's difficult to accurately liken it to anything else--even Efterklang's last album, "Tripper," is left behind by Parades. [Nov 2007, p.106]

Rather than sounding like an '80s soft-rock rehash, they have worked with up-to-the-minute beat merchants Timbaland and Nate 'Danja' Hills to create a dramtic, contemporary pop concoction. [Dec 2007, p.98]