[Doesn't] always make satisfactory listening. [Dec 2005, p.104]

Rolls by like a summery blast of mid-'60s AM radio. [Sep 2005, p.89]

Like a series of melancholy one act plays. [Jan 2006, p.131]

Through it all, Veirs' voice remains intimate but deadpan -- a la Suzanne Vega. [Sep 2005, p.96]

Surgery won't catapult the group into the realm of all-time greats, but it's certainly a move in the right direction. [Sep 2005, p.92]

Uneven but exceptionally inventive. [Sep 2005, p.92]

There are times when their admiration for R.E.M. burns a little too brightly... but overall this marks another step forward. [Mar 2005, p.100]

If you didn't know what the band have been capable of, this would be good enough. [Aug 2005, p.94]

Crowell employs his gift for setting complex ideas to twangy hooks. [Oct 2005, p.101]

Live drums and guitars give it a feeling of anarchic playfulness. [Aug 2005, p.101]

This is chic pop electronica. [Aug 2005, p.101]

At times they resemble The B-52's having a bitter row, at others a particularly violent Femmes. [Jul 2005, p.110]

Less has become more for Richard Thompson. [Sep 2005, p.96]

Throws out the genre manual and leaves every cell, body and soul, buzzing. [Dec 2005, p.100]

His gritty voice and folk-art lyricism ensure that these stylistic curveballs carry real emotional resonance. [Sep 2005, p.90]

Lovely. [Oct 2005, p.114]

A second rate version of the original. [Sep 2005, p.102]

The blend of Moulds old and new is highly successful. [Aug 2005, p.100]

Mraz is an entertaining smartass. [Feb 2006, p.98]

Theirs is really a taste worth acquiring. [Sep 2005, p.103]

A welcome drop in intensity. [Oct 2005, p.102]

Honeycomb is really closer to the Dylan of New Morning than Blonde On Blonde; an angry young man finally transformed by a new voice and outlook. [Aug 2005, p.95]

Experimental longueurs and lack of vocals mean this trip's not for everyone, but out-rock fans should get on board. [Aug 2005, p.109]

Whereas Eno's purest ambient music has such an organic abstractness the listener stops thinking about what is actually producing the sounds, Lanois favours guitars, which links his music more to established styles. [Jul 2005, p.110]

Too much of it passes by easily, leaving little lasting impression. [Aug 2005, p.101]

By focusing on the temporal, he reduces himself to simple protest music rather than timeless folk. [Aug 2005, p.104]

A tendency to indulgence... undermines the album's overall potency. [Aug 2005, p.96]

The heritage soul signposts multiply with almost hallucinatory rapidity. [Aug 2005, p.104]