Matt Shultz has never sung more convincingly, but these are big, ideas-drenched songs, packed with beguiling twists and turns. [Jan 2016, p.108]

This box set may be a dizzying experience at times, but it shows a superstar-in-the-making working out where he wants to go, and contains all the excitement that promises within. [Jan 2016, p.116]

Hearing these set whole makes a difference: sparse yet hypnotic; with Lou on commanding form. [Jan 2016, p.120]

It works as an excellent overview of his career. [Jan 2016, p.118]

It's not perfect, but there's enough of their magic here to see even Harry Potter fall back under their spell. [Jan 2016, p.106]

Utterly distinctive, this excellent, effortlessly surprising record is the perfect cleanser for even the most jaded musical palette. [Jan 2016, p.106]

At 41 minutes, Blackstar is a more concise statement than The Next Day and a a far, far more intriguing one, enticing you to follow Bowie further down this freshly-rediscovered, individualistic path where sonic surprises lurk around every corner--a journey that, at times, is not for the faint of heart. [Jan 2016, p.104]

Lindberg is dedicated to atmosphere, and if these songs are disconcertingly hazy as they move through the dry ice, they just about hold a twisted shape of their own. [Jan 2016, p.111]

This warm and busy album pursues pop as a democratic ideal. The uplift isn't subtle--the tracklisting looks like something you'd come up with after a wrap of MDMA-- but it's infectious. [Jan 2016, p.110]

Baroness have confidently produced one of the year's best metal albums. [Jan 2016, p.106]

Heroically in-depth liner notes tell the full warty story of a label whose output still stimulates. [Dec 2015, p.119]

Often inspiring, sometimes challenging, but, crucially, never dull. [Dec 2015, p.118]

If the songs themselves sometimes seem to float by without fully grabbing the attention, when the melodies rise above the textures, as in The Blue Nile-style ache of Send Me Home, Lanterns On The Lake give us a glimpse of what might make them truly special. [Dec 2015, p.109]

Its delicately observed song cycle unfolds like a novella or short film, with tracks that might seem slight isolation gaining resonance in situ. [Dec 2015, p.108]

Compared to the rapid evolution happening elsewhere (not least from his old rival James Blake), Woon here sounds like he's performing with the safety-catch on. [Dec 2015, p.110]

This is great music for driving. In a hovercraft. With someone chasing you. [Dec 2015, p.111]

Using multiple, often unsystematic rhythmic modes, this alien mood is sustained, though when Kode9's late lyrical foil The Spaceape makes a spectral appearance in the fleeting Third Ear Transmission, you're reminded of how much he contributed. [Dec 2015, p.109]

The further you get into Mythologies, the further off-piste Cheatahs go. [Nov 2015, p.106]

Life lived close to home, outside any metropolitan notions of centre, is continually apparent in these intimate melodic reveries, which mull romantic vicissitudes via folk-influenced acoustic and sometimes molten electric rock. [Dec 2015, p.113]

While it may be too easy to reach for the word "cinematic," it can't be avoided. [Dec 2015, p.104]

Second time around their disco shtick remains paramount but they've added traditional songwriting craft. [Dec 2015, p.106]

A swinging selection ranging from Lonnie Johnson to The Milk Carton Kids, from folk, country and blues to rollicking R&B, stripped down, hot and sweaty. [Dec 2015, p.108]

Alone In The Universe is warm-hearted, consummate, just about perfect. [Dec 2015, p.110]

The paper-thin arrangements ensure there's little here to give psych-rock peers such as Tame Impala and Temples any sleepless nights. [Dec 2015, p.109]

Perfectamundo explodes into glorious Technicolor. [Dec 2015, p.107]

An astonishing cohesive record. [Dec 2015, p.107]

Panhandle Rambler sounds more inspired than anything the 68-year-old's produced in 20 years. [Dec 2015, p.106]

It strips away their epic rock to reveal something more direct and emotionally satisfying. [Dec 2015, p.115]