Sea Of Cowards, then, is the record The Dead Weather should have come out with first, casting them firmly as a real band, albeit one that sound like they’d roofie their fan club soon as look at them. It’s actually supremely brave and exhilarating.

'Trust' is a reaffirmation of far more than a vow of silence: it's a commitment to beauty that precious few modern bands capture.

The five tracks on M3LL155X feel like parts of a whole, musically and thematically connected in a way you wouldn’t necessarily expect from a between-albums EP.

caroline’s masterpiece might be yet to come, but this formative debut album opens up a world of possibilities.

An eclectic but thoroughly satisfying record. [21 Jan 2006, p.35]

Almost cinematic in feel, much of The Hold Steady's genius lies in Finn's ability to craft songs that tell stories as wise, textured and three-dimensional as the nearest old oak tree. [13 Jan 2007, p.30]

Porridge Radio are sharpening their craft, but they’re not pretending anything’s any easier, and that’s what makes them such a uniquely compelling band.

Ultimately, Gogol are all about a collective euphoria that's right in the here and now.

This is their most convincing and compelling work to date. Amid all the experimentation of this excellent album, The Districts have hit a new, complex and compelling stride.

While the talented singer’s debut album ‘Don’t Let the Kids Win’ was a sort of musical bildungsroman--the sometimes unsure steps of a new artist finding her path--the more assured follow-up is Crushing by name and brilliantly crushing by nature.

For all this uncertainty, the record is incredibly assured.

The record stands as an all-encompassing culmination of Tyler’s ever-varying sound, showing that growth isn’t always linear and that artists can be a multitude of things. On ‘Call Me…’, Tyler cements his place as a generational talent, one in fine form and continuing to push the boundaries of his vision and kaleidoscopic sound.

These dark, old blues tracks have never sounded more haunting.

Cox may have tagged Atlas Sound as just another side-project, but Logos is a clear indication that his solo creative output is just as richly rewarding as what came before.

Opener ‘Game Of The Heart’ is the closest he gets to the sound of his old band, and is an undeniable gem of New York rock’n’roll. Elsewhere he tackles new styles.

They're staying put, yet somehow they're kicking harder than ever.

The hard-fought ‘My 21st Century Blues’ is unequivocally RAYE from start to finish.

A kind of urban folksiness runs deep through the record, and the strummed softness of ‘Would You Rather’ even features Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst. The downbeat vibe is cut through by unmitigated banger ‘Motion Sickness’ but Strangers In The Alps is definitely album for the sad times.

Even their B-sides are full of dark magic. [2 Apr 2005, p.50]

If Squid can make daring, experimental music sound as fun as this, then they will take some stopping.

There are few unfamiliar messages and it’s all dense and considered, but never overwrought or explicitly angry. What really emerges is Kendrick's nuanced worldview.

She’s no longer content with being the elusive girl behind the screen, proving she can shapeshift, push boundaries and still keep us hooked – all in under 20 minutes.

Gone is the orchestration of 2008’s ‘Entanglements’, though the melodrama of the Portland band’s baroque pop remains.

Like nothing else you’ll hear this year.

After the conventional bar-band fuzz of The Catholics, ‘Nonstoperotik’ is a welcome return to the quirky experimentalism of "Frank Black" and "Teenager Of The Year."

This record is a triumph of belief and dogged determination over those people who thought he was a barnacle on the coattails of his famous friend.

It makes for a frequently breathtaking companion to ‘Take Me Apart’. In a debut album which was all about breaking down, ‘Raven’ reminds us of what it means to be put back together.

[Flowers] bares more on Wonderful Wonderful than ever before, and the result is the band’s best album since 2006’s ‘Sam’s Town’.