Theirs is music brimming over with passion first explored, then exploded.

The album's second half is still woefully lacking, one big mess of boredom and monotony.

This album works adequately, maybe exclusively, within the folds of Bright Eyes' self-contained space, and that's really not such a bad thing.

The original Pussy Cats may not be classic enough to be untouchable, but Nilsson was enough of an oddball original, and the album carries so much back story, that a remake of it just ends up being a "why bother" moment.

All over Let's Build a Fire, +/- fails to capitalize on the moments of beauty and originality by either doing too much or doing too little.

Comparing his remarkable contributions to Deerhoof with this boring, nondescript effort suggests that Cohen should open his studio doors and welcome collaborators.

Squarepusher's wide range is bound to disappoint some listeners.

Save for the unnecessary interludes, the strength of Press Play is in its ability to employ so many different styles, sounds, influences and mold them into one extremely coherent package.

How lucky to be either a new or old fan, hearing Jansch at such a late age and in such a remarkable state.

Another stellar song collection.

The musicians' new sense of restraint gives us what may very well be the Blood Brothers' smartest album yet.

A beautiful back-porch album.

Micah P. Hinson and the Opera Circuit is a pure expression of turmoil, a cathartic release through art that skillfully avoids self-obsessed mawkishness.

Be Still Please occasionally falls victim to over-orchestration. But McCaughan proves too much of an indie-rock veteran and pro to let that sink the entire album.

With their music and attitude backing up this mature, sophisticated and affecting version of themselves, the members of Oxford Collapse stake their claim among not only Sub Pop's ranks, but as one of indie rock's best new bands.

Transcendence has yet to occur, but they have taken the required step in acquiring a broader range of exposure.

An almost-perfect blend of '60s-style Britpop, '90s-style Britpop, and the post-punk of the new millennium, Inside In/Inside Out is the rare debut that features not only the kind of exuberance/naivete that only bunch of nineteen-year-olds could produce, but also the thoughtful consistency characteristic of seasoned professionals.

While the rawk portion of Meek Warrior... is a bit of a letdown, Akron/Family hasn't lost its knack for making pretty with the acoustics.

[The songs] demand reconstruction that can only come from multiple listens. Unfortunately, the initial impact of the record is so muted that only an artist as challenging and road-tested as Beck warrants such effort.

Loose, sloppy playing and power hooks.

This is far from an album that will appeal to all, but it's a hell of a lot more fun than the Hold Steady's previous two efforts.

The Dears really do sound a lot like late-'90s Blur.

Most of The Crane Wife consists of rehashes of Decemberists staples and by-the-books, cookie-cutter indie pop that runs the gamut between pleasant enough ("O, Valencia!") and barely tolerable ("Summersong").

Like fellow hook king/smooth soul singer Nate Dogg, Brown takes most of his solo record and spreads some watered-down slick R&B all over the dance floor and fucks up everyone's game.

If that same sense of insularity and reserve -- magnified by Nastasia's pitch-perfect, inflectionless soprano -- keeps On Leaving from connecting like it could have, the music draws you in, even at its slowest and starkest.

Thankfully, on Live a Little, he... sticks to what he does best: creating lovely, literate pop-rock.

Ultimately, Beach House is a mood piece, finding a specific tone and lingering there for its entirety.

Though the production value of Love and Other Planets intermittently occupies the same close corners that Homesongs did, Ilham's newer work presents a concept that is far too vast to for him to have covered on his rather intimately constructed solo debut.