It shows that whatever life brings her, Case can turn it into something startling. [Jul 2018, p.108]

Despite th[e] bleakness, Pure Comedy is delivered with wit and warmth, and redeemed by the tiniest twinkle of light. [May 2017, p.110]

The main distinction is the relative lack of spellbinding melodies. [Nov 2019, p.108]

Utterly entrancing. [Dec 2006, p.141]

Funneling psychedelic sounds through soulful gospel has long been a musical quest.... Matthew E. White's band have nailed the gig with their first experiment. [Feb 2013, p.106]

This lush 36-track comp traces Richter's influences,meandering from vintage to post-rock to contemporary and is twinkling, Sunday-morning music in excelsis. [Aug 2017, p.115]

Most of Kish Kash sounds like the album they intended to make after Remedy. [Nov 2003, p.106]

A superbly stealthy assault on the ears, stroking and unsettling in equal measure.

Tomorrow's Harvest delivers oceans of spare, mellow and melodic electronica, but what it doesn't offer is much in the way of surprises. [Aug 2013, p.98]

Uneasy listening from honey-tongued, dark-hearted singer.

Politically charged, smart, melodic and irrepressible--it's a fascinating record. [Summer 2018, p.116]

Sometimes an attitude, a thumping beat and an A-plus scream like the one Carrie Brownstein provides here are really all that's needed. [Oct 2002, p.117]

As a whole, The Harrow and the Harvest maintains a singular mood and sense of atmosphere -- its terrain, musically and emotionally, is stark and bleak but beautiful. [Aug. 2011, p. 118]

If some of Stornoway's folkier past has been lost in transition, then so be it. Fortunately, the conceptual nods to birdlife on every song from chief songwriter and rained ornithologist Brian Biggs compensate by finding a mainstream-friendly alternative. [May 2014, p.112]

The radio sessions on this nine-disc set show that their most anthemic songs could just be as captivating in an intimate setting, but it's the live sets here that really illustrate their story. [Dec 2018, p.117]

High Voilolet features 11 tracks; five are good, six extraordinary. [Jun 2010, p.116]

The West Londner's debut is startlingly intimate, full of soulful, jazzy echoes of a lonely city. [May 2019, p.116]

Occasionally sentimental but always endearing, it's impressive stuff. [Oct 2018, p.116]

A refreshingly upbeat counterpoint to 2006's opaque, Brian Eno assisted Surprise. [May 2011, p.124]

What this collection leaves you wanting--and what Goldfrapp do most wonderfully--is weirdness. [Mar 2012, p.116]

Work every bit as lush as that which recently propelled Rufus Wainwright to stardom. [Sep 2005, p.119]

There's still something truly magical in the wistful clarity of her voice. [Nov 2005, p.131]

An inspired hook-up that brings out the best in both contributors [Killer Mike and El-P].[Aug 2012, p.109]

Lewis has never sounded on stronger form than she does here. [May 2019, p.109]

Its humongous piledriving choruses, variously recalling Placebo, Wheatus and even Rush, are match by its gloriously knowing wit. [Jul 2017, p.112]

His seventh album bristles with ambition, merging influences ranging from hair metal and Merseybeat. [Jul 2010, p.136]

They haven't completely severed links with the past--the bruising Wonderful Life comes with a cameo from Cradle Of Filth squawker Dani Filth-- but mostly it's a bold leap into the future. [Feb 2019, p.108]

"I need to rebuild a gang spirit," Morrissey said, and you can hear exactly that quality in the album's best moments. [Mar 2014, p.122]