Many of the songs on this fourth LP begin promisingly enough, but some lose their way when frontman Alexei Barrow and bassist Kelly Southern pitch in with mildly hysterical vocals, the clashing combination descending into a shouty mess. [May 2014, p.113]

The intended fully immersive Sensurround experience eludes them, leaving just an occasionally diverting breeze. [Aug 2017, p.105]

What's lacking are a few copper-bottomed pop melodies to bind it all together; the kind of thing his collaborators normally provide, in other words. He's beter as a team player. [Mar 2010, p.101]

Their debut album sits comfortably between the party-heart, old skool shape-throwing of Jurassic Five and the darker weedscapes of Cypress Hill.

Twista's overshadowed by West, but with jacked-up soul tunes such as Overnight Celebrity the result, who cares?

Alas, they undermine themselves with a weedy production which too often gives proceedings a demo-ish air. [Mar 2005, p.99]

You have to salute Jaar's ambitious, freewheeling approach, but a little more cohesion would've sealed it. [Dec 2016, p.109]

At times mesmerising, at others merely patience-testing, it nevertheless stays true to Darko's vision of himself as a man apart. [Nov 2015, p.103]

There are less stirring points--England, for instance, never really seems to move, and album closer Please Let Me Let It Go is a little too somnambulant. [Nov 2014, p.104]

For a record that initially seems nothing more than a charming little reverie, it's difficult to shake off. [Dec 2012, p.102]

Even if she sometimes strays into down-home schmaltz, the world of alt-folk would be poorer without her. [Apr 2007, p.122]

The follow-up isn't quite so startling [as his debut] and the horrible guitar indulgence of Dear Friend is his first major misstep, but assisted by Jackson Browne, David Crosby, assorted Heartbreakers, Roy Harper and Wilco's Patrick Sansome he's evolved. [Dec 2013, p.117]

They're better when operating at full-throttle, as on the muscular Blood and carefree Our Ego, but for music intended to elevate, the rest remains strangely earthbound. [Feb 2014, p.118]

Sea Sew exudes the sort of simple, homespun charm that many strive to achieve but so few succeed in pulling off. [Jun 2009, p.123]

They remain most compelling when Hanna lets rip, as on the propulsive, grinding 'Me & Mary.' [Mar 2009, p.93]

Beans is also in eclectic mood, delivering word association freestyles over a dizzying array of instrumental backdrops. [Mar 2011, p.101]

Retro, but in no way passe, it's little wonder that kindred spirit Mark Ronson recently proclaimed himself a fan. [Oct 2009, p.112]

Goddess In The Doorway is the work of a man who is generally interested and occasionally inspired. [#184, p.135]

Lavigne displays a musical guile way beyond her years. [Sep 2002, p.109]

Like most of his albums of the last decade, NonStopErotik covers all his stylistic bases. [May 2010, p.115]

The band's power chorus-penning know-how is evident each of these slick and sometimes over-polished ten tracks. [Jun 2011, p.125]

False Idols might fall short of such heights [of his debut], but at least sounds like the same person made it to the studio. [Jul 2013, p.111]

Charming but once-paced opener from Denver couple. [July 2011, p. 120]

While I Got You's rock-solid funk shows they know how to work up a sweat, the emotional themes don't always connect with equal force, Hatcher sounding most impassioned on 306, an ode to his ageing Peugeot hatchback. [Sep 2018, p.114]

It's actually the album's introspective second half which proves most affecting. [Dec 2016, p.110]

It doesn't always work.... But when they hit their hypnotic stride on the pulsating title track and the languidly poppy Talk, there's loveliness and invention to spare. [Nov 2015, p.104]

Flawed though it is, this brave and canny album hits the reset button and buys her a future. [Jan 2017, p.105]

The sense of the singer reclaiming a little of himself with these meditative jams is unmistakable. [Jul 2012, p.109]