They’ll never be one of the greats, but Band of Horses have proved that they’ve near mastered the art of making quality, old-fashioned rock ‘n roll.

Part of me wishes that Swift would do a bit more soul-searching. The Life of a Showgirl is good entertainment, but I'm still trying to figure out how any of it matters on a deeper level. If you’re not fully invested in all aspects of her life, and whatever drama stems from it, then it’s tough to get emotionally on board. That makes this a glossy, surface level pop record for the majority of listeners. It’s arguably her most infectious, energetic, and fun release in several years, which will buy this LP some instant mileage in terms of streams, but I wonder how its replay value will hold up once the novelty wears off.

Slaughterhouse hearkens back to the early days of the New York hardcore underground, and it's a travesty that it does nothing more. With commonplace soul-influenced boom bap at the fore, compositions this anachronistic just don't cut it in 2009.

Hush not only breaks down new barriers for the band, but more importantly, is just a pleasure to listen to.

Positive Songs for Negative People lives up to its name and is an enjoyably straight forward record. Unfortunately, the album’s biggest strength also holds it back from ranking among his finest, as the overarching optimism makes the record feel slightly thin and superficial compared to his previous offerings.

Del sways wildly between hit and miss. And Eleventh Hour, for all its boisterous and awkward handling, fails with a resounding thud.

Float is rescued from abject tedium by the deep, poetic lure of the subject matter and a couple of genuinely outstanding compositions in ‘Float’ and ‘(No More) Paddy’s Lament.’

Noel has crafted one of those rare gems in an LP where every track is a potential single.

It’s not bad in the sense its unredeemable, just in the sense that it fails to do what it wants to really, really hard.

This album is simply objectively terrible. Issues have managed to craft an album that is entirely without any sort of value, appeal, artistic merit, creativity.

For a band that once never failed to make an impression, be it positive or nauseating, the fact that the best Hysterical can muster is indifference is simply disappointing.

Kindly Now isn't perfect, and feels more like a transition to something truly spectacular where everything in Henson's bag of tricks can be perfectly utilised; for now, it'll do just fine.

Neck of the Woods marks interesting territory in their development; it both stands its ground and stretches its legs without actually feeling like it's desperate to do either.

Return of the Dream Canteen is better overall than the previous effort. It might have a couple of higher sonic peaks, but suffers from similar flaws. Obviously, one hour-long album with the strongest tracks recorded in the past couple of years would have been enough for a stronger comeback.

The production quality does most of the work here, because when you listen, everything seems relatively simple. And that’s not a bad thing by any means.

Its faults are minimal, though its highs are somewhat indistinguishable. In the end, you're left with a wash of mid-paced, hook-laden and relatively solid post-post-hardcore.

If you liked the Com Truise of old, you will almost certainly enjoy this, and if you've ever been skeptical about the quality of music that chillwave would be able to produce, Wave 1 should dispel all doubts. Highly recommended.

You Will Eventually Be Forgotten offers nothing new nor does it pay respectable homage to its influences.

This is a very nice record, yet feels more settled overall. Nevertheless, it's a matter of choice rather than quality.

Ultimately, regardless of how invested you choose to be in the sentiments of pessimism and dejection, Asphalt for Eden is thoughtful and eclectic, blending elements of shoegaze, industrial, boom-bap, and ambience both sedative and rousing. All the while, it balances a grim, overarching societal direction with a thwarted attitude.

The Pineapple Thief remain stuck in a rut, delivering more or less the same record as before. Maybe going metal or full prog will yield better results in the future. Unfortunately, It Leads to This turned out only marginally better than the previous LP. They can do better, so a more drastic change of direction might be helpful next time.

Taylor opts for interchangeable melodies that never really threaten to take attention away from the lyrics, which function more as tabloid clarification than earnest poetry. I struggle to hum a single melody but, against my will, I can make an educated guess as to what song is a Matty Song or a Travis Song or a Joe song.

Overall, 4:13 Dream is an extremely consistent album throughout its runtime.

As gorgeous a Ryan Adams record as anything in his own catalog.

The material is of a consistently high standard, nary a clunker in the bunch, but while many will be surprised by Send Away The Tigers, few will be bowled over.

All in all, The General Strike is all we can really ask for from Anti-Flag these days: a solid set of tunes for the pinko bastard in all of us.

It’s not as consistently good as Now What?! and it doesn’t contain inFinite’s peaks. Nonetheless, it’s classy, enjoyable, and it’s certainly commendable to see legendary musicians who have nothing to prove, feel the desire to express themselves artistically.

Brimming with melody and bustling with energy, The Rentals have made a statement album out of Lost In Alphaville.