The result is a beautifully atmospheric travelogue on which their voices and guitars, plus occasional harmonica, are accompanied by nothing more than the sound of the rails humming and a whistle blowing. [Oct 2016, p.34]

There is much to love about this new, more earthen mode. [Jul 2020, p.30]

The "before" is fractious, two-chord Velvet Underground cool - the sultry "August," the minute-and-a-half burst of "Time Walk" - the "after" like eavesdropping on something private. [Sep 2021, p.25]

The message is heavy but the music is tremendous fun. [Nov 2022, p.38]

Ironic jape or not, Shangri-La captures the DFA label aesthetic perfectly, blending electro post-punk, disco and art-pop with conceptual elan, and icing the cake with dance-friendly production. [Jul 2011, p.103]

T Bone Burnett combines his vast understanding of American roots music with Randolph's vital grounding in gospel on the sacred steel virtuoso's third studio album. [Jul 2010, p.117]

He shines brightest on the slower material.

This stripped-down set from the Palace/Bonnie songbook is a reminder of what a great singer Oldham has become. [Jan 2019, p.23]

DMA's showcase their ever-evolving chops as they continue to appropriate the sounds of '90s/early Y2K bands such as Oasis, Stone Roses and Doves. [Aug 2020, p.29]

Electric glitches and intriguing lyrics add to a quietly seductive package. [Nov 2025, p.27]

The album's hard-slapping boom bap, laced with confident social realist flow, could only ever have come from New York. [Mar 2015, p.71]

Gonzalez's cooing voice tends to sing the same pentatonic scale over the same minor chords on every song, which does make things a little repetitive. [Oct 2010, p.98]

Its eight songs are distinct and stirring. [Jul 2013, p.80]

Like most albums by reformed bands, it reminds you what you liked without opening up an essential new chapter. [Apr 2015, p.84]

If their third album is perhaps not quite as austere as previous offerings like 2012's Clay Class, it;s still like sticking a quarter-inch jack into a George Foreman grill. [Jul 2015, p.81]

Apart from the odd off-kilter minor key melody, they sound anything but bereft as Bagg's dreamy soprano, layers of melodic synths and soaring strings cast a dramatically romantic sheen over their pain. [Feb 2019, p.30]

Though it lacks the ingenuity of Holiday, the palpable tenderness of Get Lost or the rigour of 69 Love Songs, it does satisfy a need. [Jun 2020, p.36]

Last Day Of Summer is as good as anything White Denim have ever done. [Jan 2011, p.80]

Though their frothy, soulless hits have rarely displayed originality or purpose, Groove Armada's sixth is a revelation. [Mar 2010, p.86]

They stand out because they combine some very familiar elements with more style and grace than their peers. [Feb 2011, p.94]

A delicious pathos has sustained Jurado through seven albums. It's still intact but it's just possible to detect a lightning of his mood around rthe edges. [Nov 2008, p.105]

This terrific sequel feels bigger and better. [Dec 2011, p.81]

Fear Of The Dawn succeeds better when it surprises. [Jun 2022, p.34]

The band excel at giving fans perfectly plotted two-minute bursts of disgust and attrition, epitomised by the splendidly immature, "F*** You." [Feb 2013, p.69]

Even on stopgap releases like this relatively repetitive mini-album, DeMarco's lysergic balladry and hangdog puppy love have an unbeatable effortlessness. [Sep 2015, p.72]

Takes a few listens to become accustomed to. [Mar 2003, p.104]

Yoshimi's ebullience is inescapable on Kila Kila Kila, from the gymnastic drumming to her ecstatic, Bjorkesian yelps. [Apr 2004, p.106]

Rather fine. [Mar 2002, p.95]