This is Barnhart's least discursive outing yet. As a result, it's also his most predictable. [Oct 2007, p.108]

He's reworking his own territory. Which is why we expected the song about sweaty illegals to have a better twisted ending than "all of is are immigrants," and the tune about meth addiction to fell, well, lived in. [Oct 2007, p.100]

The edge is smoothed down here, the bitterness outweighs the resignation, and strangely, the two sound stronger on their own. [Oct 2007, p.112]

This sophomore set from the Swedish acoustic troubadour is undeniably pretty but ultimately doesn't hint at much more. [Oct 2007, p.102]

Recalling the stridency of Soul Asylum without the rock ferocity, Two Gallants are a minor annoyance. [Oct 2007, p.112]

John K. Samson's imagistic descriptions of loneliness, desperation and yearning--which avoid the goofiness that plagues, say, Fountains of Wayne--are fleshed out with chiming guitars and warm synths. [Oct 2007, p.112]

Last Light still follows a logical, workmanlike path, but detours into arch, twitchy guitar and languid, countrified ballads that show a poised sincerity. [Oct 2007, p.108]

Boss finds the duo still feral but also forlorn. [Oct 2007, p.106]

The indie Tina Turner follows up her tightly wound 2005 comeback, "I've Got My Own Hell to Raise," in the company of Drive-By Truckers and Muscle Shoals vets, whose mannered blues shuffles unfortunately sound like they're backing a beer commercial.

If 'Called' and 'Dancing on Our Graves' try too hard to conjure the spooky vibe of ancient American roots music, the persistent acoustic guitars produce waves of modern static tension.

Revivalist? Sure, but this refreshing, smarter side of the late '80s has yet to be co-opted into a hipster fashion show.

The follow-up proves Tunstall is no fluke.... but it also maks clear that Tunstall's glaring faults--dull lyrics filled with pedestrian phrases--aren't fleeting, either. [Oct 2007, p.112]

The Meanest Of Times moves beyond connecting the dots between working-class punk and ancient Celtic ditties, with surprisingly thoughful songs that explore lives shaped by drunken violence and Catholicism. [Oct 2007, p.100]

He doesn't stray far from his main band's template. [Oct 2007, p.108]

Despite numerous cameos from his mates, Drew still sounds orphaned and adrift. [Oct 2007, p.96]

This Oakland quartet teams with Yo Ma Tengo producer Roger Moutenot to create a make-or-break manifesto that often trumps indie rock's big-leaguers. [Oct 2007, p.110]

The result may be the year's heaviest, creepiest, and sexiest hard-rock group effort. [Oct 2007, p.104]

The Donnas have never seemed less enthused; none of the 14 tracks contains a melody as catchy or a beat as pumping as those on "Spend the Night" or "Gold Medal." [Oct 2007, p.99]

Vedder's incantatory vocals and campfire instrumentation evoke the eerie beauty of untouched lands. [Nov 2007, p.126]

Let's Stay Friends almost captures the band's sweaty, live weirdness on record, and it leaves enough breathing room for their wicked smarts to shimmy up through the hip-shaking indie punk. [Oct 2007, p.106]

The Bay Area band increase their stylistic range, with flashes of psychedelia, and creatively druggy overtones to balnce out the epic pummeling. [Oct 2007, p.104]

Motion City have deftly filled that space between emotional adolescence and responsible adulthood with this set of near-perfect pop. [Oct 2007, p.112]

While there's nothing here as dense and biting as the Ministry slams of Bush Sr. in the '90s, Jourgensen can still pile on the jackhammer beats and clever samples.

Occasionally, Lee's wit triumphs over his predictability. [Oct 2007, p.106]

The sweetness of Strawberry Jam is savvily balanced by the sour, or at least the edgy. [Oct 2007, p.98]

West's third album is memerizing and alienating, like all the purest forms of pop culture. [Nov 2007, p.114]

Live instruments have replaced the samples that fueled their debut, resulting in a more fluid, if still absurdly amateurish, sound. [Oct 2007, p.104]

On Happiness Ltd., they admirably mess with success, loading up their spastic, skinny-tie ditties with epic heft. [Oct 2007, p.104]