The arrival of J Mascis for Giving It All Away lightens the mood, but it's impossible to shake the sense Sugar is the sound of a band in transition. [Oct 2010, p.107]

It sounds exactly the same as the first record... Another solid, unremarkable effort. [Oct 2004, p.116]

It's heavy-duty stuff, and all the better for it. [Mar 2007, p.115]

But, alternating between the laughable and listenable, it's safe to say there's never been anything quite like the sound of him jollily croaking his way through Her Comes Santa Claus or Hark The Herald Angles Sing. [Jan 2010, p. 119]

There's nothing new here. [May 2006, p.131]

The record is righteously dominated by Gray's larger-than-life presence. [May 2007, p.127]

The attentions of trendsetting producer Dave Kelly ensure the music is tight where it matters. [Dec 2002, p.112]

Their shift towards a more traditional heavy metal aesthetic seems more a natural progression than an act of desperation. [Nov 2002, p.100]

A revelation. [Apr 2004, p.107]

Proves that there is still a place for bands playing short, noisy pop songs about girls and being young, regardless of where they come from. [Feb. 2012 p. 100]

Willfully meandering yes, but it's an enjoyable shambolic ride that bottles early Pink Floyd, Skip Spence's cracked psych-folk and the ragged majesty of the Stones' own magnum opus. [Nov 2014, p.111]

Their fifth long-player finds them back at their corrosive best. [Apr 2011, p.102]

What comes across is a band still in love with music, not necessarily their own. [Jun 2012, p.99]

The Connection is a stylistic leap, that shows surprising restraint, and--whisper it--maturity. [Nov 2012, p.102]

While cleverly mocking late-20s thwarted ambitions and McJob drudgery, Wolf offers little by way of an alternative, his lyrics ultimately as hollow as the cynical Generation X irony of the '90s. [Nov 2012, p.112]

Not quite a greatest hits then, but not short of a few crowd-pleasers either. [Jun 2018, p.106]

A record that is a highly-concentrated shot of sound. You might lose your mind, but Black Dice never lose the plot. [May 2012, p.91]

While there's lots to admire in this clearing of the creative pipes, 48:13 is ultimately proof that great albums are all about the numbers. [Jul 2014, p.98]

Abnormally Attracted To Sin is a long haul, but among these 18 songs ate some of the best Amos has written. [Jun 2009, p.123]

Differs markedly from 2003's Radio Blackout... with vocals and punk-pop structures replacing the glam-tecnho clunk of yore. [Sep 2005, p.120]

There are enough decent moments here for this to represent a step back in the right direction. [Apr 2016, p.117]

An album with dirgeful ballads, though they do at least let her show off her excellent voice. [Dec 2017, p.109]

Now they are finally more punchy than punchable. [Nov 2006, p.140]

It's the interplay of textures and surfaces that facinates, only faltering on the choice of guest vocalists. [Jun 2010, p.120]

Giant "woooaaahhs" abound but as with anything frantically chasing arena singalongs, Love Lust Faith + Dreams feels empty in the extreme. [Jul 2013, p.111]

While Josh Davis has valiantly refused to photocopy his pioneering 1996 debut Endtroducing, this fourth album could use its mystery and cohesion. [Nov. 2011, p. 139]

Meteora is less an artistic endeavour than an exercise in target marketing. [May 2003, p.104]

A bit relentless at times, but Chemical Brothers fans should give it a spin.