It has that out-of-time, sketchbook privacy of so much current home-recorded memoradelia, but it also has a grit or grain to it--cheap Xerox rather than woozy VHS wobble--which is strangely refreshing. [May 2011, p.53]

There is aimlessness on occasion--the mainly instrumental "OVNI" frankly just sounds like messing around--but for the most part the sense of glee in vigorous sound making for cranky and rebellious ends is infectious. [Aug 2010, p.86]

The expanded bag of references and methods that he draws from on The Rarity Of Experience indicates that Forsyth and company aren't settling for what they know they can do, but using it as a starting point to figure out where to go next. [Feb 2016, p.50]

Disappears present an album that sounds pretty confident in its pursuit of forward motion yet distractingly familiar. [Mar 2012, p.65]

The trio play it both tight and upright, locking themselves into repetitive patterns so compulsive they approach the kinetic force of rave. [Mar 2011, p.58]

The neo-soul influenced beats Jenkins raps and sings over often sounding submerged in a fog of reverb effects and filtration. Jenkins lyrics, too, are dense, containing their own murky depths, but his intense intelligence and formidable talent is never less than crystal clear. [Oct 2015, p.63]

Excitement, sure, but little surprise. [Oct 2015, p.67]

I miss the grit and grain of Skelton’s unique string sounds, but he still gets a brightness in his melancholy, often via a bristling major chord. [Oct 2020, p.61 ]

Honor Found In Decay is a solid Neurosis album, but it doesn't find them doing anything new. [Nov 2012, p.63]

The overall effect may be part shamanic dance to the thrum of the universe part 1980s arcade game, but All The Way exploits the transcendent powers of both. [Sep 2008, p.50]

With more emphasis on achieving that elusive breakout moment than its predecessor and infinitely less grit, here Sway shows little of the infectious individuality he used to bring to less commercial work. [Oct 2008, p.72]

The result is a tougher but spacier sound. The original vocals are mixed in more prominently, and interplay with the deejay interjections relates to the lyrical content. [Nov 2022, p.71]

Those who lost interest after Tha Carter III may want to start paying attention again. [Sep 2015, p.57]

Some moments on the Pet Shop Boys' 11th album are as unsettling as any music released this decade. [Nov 2012, p.64]

The One is both sonically and conceptually strong enough to transcend that small internet buzz circle. [Mar 2011, p.62]

Even without Gobert's cinematographic backdrop Simon Werner A Disparu stands as a solid instrumental album in its own right. [Apr 2011, p.63]

If nothing else, these [political] elements give Liberation a darker hue. [#240, p.67]

It's fun but nonessential. [Nov 2012, p.64]

Even when he's calling all the shots and playing most of the instruments himself, Turner seems to stay in the background. For the most part, his strategy works. [Nov 2013, p.62]

The album works best when the trio downshift to embrace Kaur's vocals and rhythmical sitar twangs. [Mar 2011, p.61]

In Love With Oblivion is best when it's tough, primitive and direct. [Apr 2011, p.67]

Immaculately interwoven electronics and the care with which each beautifully recorded track unfolds recall Chicago post-rock. [#254, p.53]

A loop can be a grounded, limiting element to work with – the delightfully wobbly “Slappin’ Yo Face” has nowhere to go, quickly running out of steam. Elsewhere this very quality opens up beautiful meditative potential. [Sep 2020, p.60]

Although there are still psych-rock moments that recall the strident moves of Quicksilver Messenger Service or Spirit, it's a darker and more straightforward album than 2012's Between The Times And The Tides. [Nov 2013, p.63]

A pleasurable collection of comfortably played, understated, slightly skewed songs with smart lyrics. [#214, p.52]

As on their first album, he [Jim Jarmusch] blows gusts of electric noise through the open spaces in van Wissem's patiently articulated structures. [Nov 2012, p.67]

MIKE is a charismatic voice who excels at the art of humblebragging: “They tellin’ me I’m big, I’m shorter inside/But the remainder what I give when I’m recording these lines”, he raps on “Lost Scribe”. But one wishes he’d offer a few actual choruses instead of modest refrains. [Mar 2025, p.63]

These eight tracks feel like a consolidation of his practices, interspersing sombre classical suites with footwork-indebted rhythms that flicker like distant pulsars. [Jan 2016, p.69]