Given a fuzzed-out, subterranean production glaze, Butter filters everything from surf and lounge touches to Spaghetti Western flourishes, but is best when spinning cool pop hooks up out of the muck. [Oct 2012, p.87]

Centipede Hz is an album that both gazes up into the cosmos, and stares down into the dirt--and perhaps that's not so weird.

Tempest is in many respects the most far-reaching, provocative and transfixing album of Dylan's later career.

Live with it a little and Algiers reveals itself to be a warm and compassionate affirmation of the band's deep-rooted DNA, with enough fresh twists to keep this compelling story moving forward.

Pleiades may not live up to the cerebral promise of its title, but boats songs, in the likes of "Play," "Sunset & Echo," and single "Further." [Sep 2012, p.74]

The soundtrack works beautifully without reference to the [1975] movie. [Sep 2012, p.96]

Orfeo's spare soundscape can sometimes seem a bit frugal, but Hield proves a versatile frontwoman. [Aug 2012, p.73]

The irony is that Mature Themes, full of nonsense and wonderful ideas, further cements his reputation as one of the more vital voices of his generation.

Yirga wears his influences too obviously on the introspective solo pieces, but these are early days. [Aug 2012, p.83]

On cutesy likes of "King And Lionheart," they're closer in spirit to the plague of emoters loosed upon the world by the success of Mumford & Sons. [Sep 2012, p.81]

Barwuick's reliably beautiful voice sits at the back of the mix, observing the shimmering sonic haze below her. [Sep 2012, p.81]

Hot Cakes adds little to their hybrid Queen, AC/DC, Van Halen and Gun N' Roses, but their air-punching thrills of "Forbidden Love" and "Concrete" are undeniable. [Sep 2012, p.74]

They appear to have moved back into full-on Afrika 70 revivalism. [Sep 2012, p.73]

The songs are assured, strident and catchy, but often fairly cringeworthy too. [Sep 2012, p.73]

It's clear that if he wants to, he could easily command proceedings alongside his pals Walls and Four Tet. [Sep 2012, p.75]

It's very earnest. [Sep 2012, p.79]

The Chi-Lites' "Stoned Out Of My Mind" is ruined by needless melismatics, and the Broken Bells cover is no match for the White Stripes track on Vol. 1. But Gems include a half-tempo version of the Womacks' "Teardrops" and a stately reading of Eddie Floyd's "Nobody But You." [Sep 2012, p.86]

It revolves around bleak, squalling repetitions and a mood of wretched abjection. But Gira's voice has weathered grandly. [Sep 2012, p.86]

[Perry] rambles--incomprehensibly, as ever--over various trippy soundscapes from Alex Paterson and Thomas Fehlmann. [Sep 2012, p.82]

The result is a record that's primarily dedicated to beauty but with an engagingly playful spirit. [Sep 2012, p.83]

In a recording career that stretches back more than four decades, Ry Cooder has never before made an album as immediate as Election Special.

While James Murphy's homages are leavened with irony and discrete heartache, Dear is more po-faced than pomo. [Sep 2012, p.75]

There are proficient pastiches...[and] there are plenty of chugging, 6/8 neo-soul ballads. [Sep 2012, p.79]

A glossy but incoherent neo-rave pastiche. [Sep 2012, p.87]

Ascent sounds like Chasny channeling a great band's alchemical powers to his own ends, in the process making what may turn out to be a highpoint in his already rich and complex career. [Sep 2012, p.78]

Hardly the most disciplined or versatile singer, Shaver gets over on the strength of his writing. [Aug 2012, p.79]

Nevertheless, for all its omissions and repetitions, the sheer scale of this archive still feels like an exemplary work of preservation. [Sep 2012, p.92]

Despite the contemporary sheen too much here is reminiscent of a certain kind of overwrought mid-80s synthpop. [Sep 2012, p.87]

An oddly one-note follow-up. [Sep 2012, p.76]

Where Yorkston's last album was precisely drawn, the follow-up is looser and less beholden to strict arrangements, and more willing to let the musicians dictate the pace. [Sep 2012, p.84]

Global Fusion at its most accessible. [Aug 2012, p.67]

An album as heartfelt as it is musically and thematically ambitious. [Jul 2012, p.67]

Redd Kross' comeback is a stunner, taut, hyper-melodic songwriting and heavenly harmonies wed to a veritable barrage of fierce hooks and riffs. [Aug 2012, p.78]

The Wolf You Feed slithers through its dark business with reckless abandon and brute force. [Sep 2012, p.85]

It's a little too polite to beak new ground, but it certainly draws attention to more than a dozen fine--and largely overlooked--melodies from Elton's golden era. [Sep 2012, p.91]

Country Funk unearths further lesser-known practitioners of this mythical genre. [Sep 2012, p.101]

The loss of drummer Jimmy Chamberlain smarts, but "Quasar" and the :The Celestials" recall the Pumpkins' '90s heyday with out coming over as retread. [Sep 2012, p.86]

The Killer is a rich and immersive experience. [Sep 2012, p.85]

Beautifully done, with great attention to textural detail. [Sep 2012, p.83]

The glossy production and soaring choruses make it as resolutely user-friendly as her previous albums. [Sep 2012, p.81]

Intrepid, but rarely satisfying. [Sep 2012, p.81]

Arguable Little Feat's best since Lowell George checked out. [Sep 2012, p.80]

[An] elaborate, sophisticated collection. [Sep 2012, p.79]

Hot Panda have produced a terrific album, one which combines intellectual and lyrical heft with a sure ear for a catchy riff. [Sep 2012, p.79]

The best tracks put a unique stamp on these improbable hybrids. [Sep 2012, p.75]

Exercises proves Silver is in good shape. [Sep 2012, p.74]

The uncluttered folk-rock arrangements and a voice that has acquired a richer Patina since her '90s country hits contribute to the loveliest and most profound album of her career. [Sep 2012, p.74]

Mutt offers a terrific spread of styles. [Sep 2012, p.73]

The riffs are polite, the vocals maddeningly limo, and more than half the tracks are mere sketches they couldn't be bothered to colour in. [Sep 2012, p.73]

Intermezzo is one of Sir Richard Bishop's most welcoming collections. [Aug 2012, p.79]

It's gritty and urgent, but the powerful lead vocals are melodic and traditional, and the lyrics eloquent. [Aug 2012, p.75]

Beneath the jazz-folk toned melancholia there's a new dramatic intensity. [Jun 2012, p.83]

It's a consistent Crowell effort, if a bit by-the-numbers. [Jul 2012, p.70]

An LP that reaffirms your faith in hip-hop. [Aug 2012, p.75]

A Hal Wilner-produced collection that is witty and engaging and confirms her as one of the most singular, if erratic, R&B divas of our time. [Aug 2012, p.71]

A glorious ruckus. [Aug 2012, p.69]

Valentine is typically sturdy--piquant observation and low-key philosophy played against an impeccable musical backdrop. [Aug 2012, p.80]

While there are still some occasional bright spots, it never quite regains its earlier momentum. [Aug 2012, p.69]

Mostly, this is spry, melodic, and totally charming. [Aug 2012, p.79]

You don't get bands like Blur very often. They deserve great boxsets, and this feels like one. [Aug 2012, p.85]

Doseone's keen ear for a pop melody and hip-hop's punch keep him on course. [Aug 2012, p.71]

One's enjoyment of this record will largely depend on the ability to endure a man doing an uncanny impersonation of a youthful Bob Dylan. [Aug 2012, p.80]

Their ragtag religious signifiers, stretching from the Mediterranean to Bengal, feel like gap year blog entries, and Cisneros' wizened sage delivery is ludicrous. [Aug 2012, p.77]

Luckily they are one of the few bands with stadium heft and the tunes to pull it off, rendering their big-heartedness euphorically justified. [Aug 2012, p.78]

The producer's penchant for tinsel and bluster tends to obscure the duo's strengths. [Jun 2012, p.80]

Her acoustic leanings have been ditched in favour of a moody, downtempo sound, full of eerie loops and elctro-bleeping. [Jul 2012, p.80]

This delightful album rolls back the last 60 years. [Aug 2012, p.78]

Wilful, perhaps, but also a hugely inventive joy. [Aug 2012, p.77]

Shrines sees this young Canadian duo tamper with generic electro to create often sparkling results. [Aug 2012, p.78]

A mini-masterpiece. [Jun 2012, p.82]

It's a fascinating charting of a band's gradual evolution through experiment. [Aug 2012, p.93]

The follow-up [to 2009's Warm Heart Of Africa] is similarly energetic and eclectic. [Aug 2012, p.83]

The singer runs out of steam in the second half, opting for a succession of cloying ballads that, despite her beguiling voice, leaves the listener unmoved. [Aug 2012, p.75]

Brawny, anthemic hard-rock chug remains their backbone. [Aug 2012, p.69]

With all the percolating energy the album delivers, its three most memorable songs are ballads.

Everything here is much as you'd expect. [Jul 2012, p.85]

For all the fine furies collected on Handwritten, the most memorable moments are those on which The Gaslight Anthem shift to lower gears. [Aug 2012, p.66]

The songs on 151a are most notable for their beautiful bursts of melody and soaring tunefulness. [Jun 2012, p.158]

[The songs] shows, ultimately, the heights to which Jaffe can rise with time. [Jun 2012, p.158]

Confess is largely an impeccable sequel to an immaculate debut. [Aug 2012, p.82]

Bjork and Joanna Newsom are unavoidable reference pints for her hiccuping poetic whimsy. [Aug 2012, p.79]

Valley Tangents takes long, deep breaths, fuzz guitar scrawling over meandering piano in a humidified room. [Jul 2012, p.69]

A nifty wordsmith whose drawled delivery complements the menace of his woozy productions. [Aug 2012, p.80]

An affectionate collection of Walker's songs. [Aug 2012, p.80]

A brilliant album. [Aug 2012, p.80]

A connoisseur-curated selection that manages to combine inspired innovation with wit, rich melodies and irresistibly squelchy basslines. [Aug 2012, p.96]

It's the gravitational pull of Williams' great jowly voice that remains the defining feature of an often vitriolic set of songs that veer between snake-hipped R'n'B and blasted soul'n'roll.

For the first time, Longstreth's words offer real value rather than verbose decoration. [Aug 2012, p.81]

A head-first plunge into the psych-punk muck. [Aug 2012, p.76]

The melodies drift rather aimlessly but the wonderfully groggy textures will stay with you like the best kind of sonic Valium. [Aug 2012, p.75]

Heavy Blanket should weed out the part-timers. [Aug 2012, p.73]

Lyrically the tone is disappointingly mawkish. [Aug 2012, p.73]

There's little discordance but much invention and beauty. [Aug 2012, p.73]

Sometimes, it's hard to remember who's influencing who. [Aug 2012, p.70]

Unsound is a corker, sounding fresh and full of great hooks and ideas. [Aug 2012, p.77]

This female-fronted quintet continues to connect the tuneful aggression of Blondie with the SoCal sassiness of Rilo Kiley. [Aug 2012, p.71]

It's Apple's refinement as a writer that makes this harrowing psychodrama so gripping. [Aug 2012, p.69]

The highlights of their third album appear to have been forged rather than recorded. [Aug 2012, p.69]