A lesson in understatement, 'Into The Blue Again' reminds us that LaValle is the undisputed master of emitting emotion without embellishing it with perverse orchestration or all manner of multi-tracked trickery.

A curious, klezmer-infested charm.

He lays bare pissed-off tantrums and his emotion through a burgeoning self-belief and raw musicality to create his endearingly bittersweet masterpiece.

'Absolution' is Muse's most accomplished album to date, and kicks their - at the time - excellent debut album 'Showbiz' into the ground.

This debut is pretty good, but don't be surprised if you overhear some twunt proclaiming "A.R.E Weapons are so 2001 daaaaling" anytime in the next couple of months.

As smooth and comforting as an afternoon on an old leather sofa that fits you like your own skin.

'Try This' is quite the album - most things to all people, touched by audacious greatness, and as fine an advert for imperfectionism as we could've demanded.

Patchy, though when it's good (and nicked) it's very good.

This is an album of gin-fuelled laments, uprisings and battered beauty: such dignity and sharp proficiency shows he can only do better.

There are ideas galore here, which is always admirable, though you feel he could have taken the 15 tracks, whittled it down to 10, and developed all this stuff to staggering effect.

It’s just a shame that after seven plays, it’s still a bit tricky to remember what any of the tunes go like.

Even for a band that crowbar "love" into as many titles as they can, you've got to admire their sauce, and, impressively, they're cramming really difficult music into affable scuzz-pop coatings.

It’s an atmospheric and tender record, and although you have to wait for each line you never lose patience.

'The Magnificent' largely sidelines Jeff's considerable turntablist skills preferring to showcase the talents of his A Touch Of Jazz production company.

A shimmering snowflake of a record.

It's hard not to feel that the mystique is so damaged by the poor execution of the opening, that the rest of 'St. Elsewhere', however good, struggles to catch up.

Even in spite of their obvious knack for a beast of a tune that knows no indie fear, they do a cracking job of getting peculiar on us as well.

Chock full of songs that are lounging rather than strictly loungey, cosmpolitan-sounding in a wearing-aviator-shades alongside a large-haired lovely kind of way and blessed with harmonies that fall narrowly on the breezy side of melancholia.

It's a warm and welcoming experience all round, and very much the mark of a band that know exactly what they're doing even if they sound remarkably out of step with everyone else.

Well as befits such a completely uncompromising visionary/awkward pain in the arse (delete one if you can be bothered) it veers between the preposterously awful 'Genuine Lullabelle' with its bewildering spoken word passages and the awesome wire taut assault of 'Be Prepared'.

Although Darnielle's incessant lyrical urgency occasionally causes some words to sound too forced, it's these delicate, well placed notes, minimal piano tinkles and two chord strums that save the songs.

Lamb's most rounded and complete collection yet.... Even if they've lost something special in the process.

At least 'Musicology' reunites us with that trademark Prince sound, that regal sparkle that’s influenced many and been matched by none.

Nothing earth shattering, but enjoyable nonetheless.

[The live disc is] arguably far more interesting and focused and energized than the studio effort.

It is a lot of fun, brilliantly produced and is the perfect winter soundtrack to plans for a summer road-trip.

One of the most distinctive and satisfying records you'll hear all summer.

Despite the unconventional approach, it's definitely an album.