The Private Press does not break ground like Endtroducing... did, but it showcases a wiser, more versatile Shadow, and in many ways it is a better record than its predecessor.

This album's not a joke. It's too damn good.

Regardless of how much noodling, compromising or second guessing this trio does, Martsch and crew remain the best band America is not listening to.

Effortless, breathy pop music that you just have to close your eyes and smile to.

One of 2000's best rock records.

Once again, the enthusiasm of the delivery and the fun of being absorbed into the music belies the fact that the group's four members are amazingly talented at what they do.

Their music is as strong as ever and they certainly deserve your attention.

It has so many promising moments, so few -- and I would say hardly any -- flaws, that I just can't help but think, "what if he saw it through?"

Maladroit combines the best parts of the three previous Weezer albums: creamy guitar riffs, addictive beats, staple "hoo hoo's" and the brilliant mystique of Cuomo’s lyrics.

To long-time Jayhawks fans, the new album -- almost entirely acoustic -- is a welcome return to form.

Mwng fits right in with their unique vision, and shows that the band can happily and productively work outside of the traditional bounds of the music industry.

Tweedy, O'Rourke and Kotche push each other in exciting directions, with songs building on the contributions of each.

Insignificance’s length of less than 40 minutes perhaps indicates that O’Rourke is not as serious about producing a pop opus as he is interested in getting a kick out of screwing around with pop song writing.

Unlike past efforts, the songs don't overstay their welcome, evoking more smile-enducing moments than one would come to expect from RHP

The Coast is Never Clear's shortcomings fall in Beulah's tendency to recycle the same song and name it something new.... Nonetheless, Beulah is still making some of the most infectious and smart pop songs anywhere in independent rock.

It will remind you that Stephen Malkmus is one hell of a songwriter, whether you like him or not.

It almost sounds like Pirner is born again, and as anyone who's heard some of Soul Asylum's earlier records -- especially Hangtime and And The Horse They Rode In On -- knows, that's a good thing.

A subtle pop album that needs multiple listens and draws upon 1970s soul harmonies as much as it does Lou Reed’s repetitious rhythm guitar.

The Sophtware Slump more than makes up for its repetitiveness with sheer atmosphere and brilliance.

It's great to love an album on the surface just for the hooks, and also realize that underneath there is some true thought going into the concept.

Devil's Workshop is the most compact realization of the group's aesthetic, and it contributes 11 solid songs to Frank's ever-expanding canon.

Twelve songs of quality, with an impeccable overall arrangement.

There is no doubt in my mind -- and in this I seem to have a lot of company -- that Transatlanticism is Death Cab For Cutie's best album so far.

With patience, 13 reveals itself as sort of a poor man's OK Computer, only instead of Radiohead's airborne sonic journey through the future, Blur investigates the murk of its inner-city swamps.

Yet another shining psychedelic opus.

Not unlike Wilco’s Being There, Show Me Your Tears gives classic rock lovers a new album to celebrate -- an album to drink by while mourning the fact that most aging rock icons rarely supply anything this raucous anymore.

Although some aspects of the group's live show threaten to turn the entire thing into an ironic joke, the excellent music here betrays no such mixed messages.

While the songs aren't that different from "classic" Spiritualized, the method in which they were recorded presents a whole new set of sonic possibilities.