Passages of modish electro show that they're certainly on top of things, yet their heart remains pure pop. [May 2013, p.75]

The Vines' place in the rock gene pool is shaped by elements of controlled guitar thrash, often complex harmony, bubblegum psychedelia and polished piano-driven ballads with an early Seventies whiff. [Aug 2002, p.116]

Categorisable, but mostly excellent. [Oct 2017, p.35]

The songs here are country rock, unadorned and sensitively played, nestled around Young's lovely acoustic take on Barn's "Song OF The Seasons." Inevitably, Young's influence proliferates. [May 2023, p.31]

The overall effect is immersive, wallowing, sad but often beautiful. [Feb 2019, p.27]

It lives and dies on its guest vocalists: female MC Tink shines on "Wanna Party," as does grime veteran Riko Dan on "Speng." Elsewhere, a reliance on drab Auto-Tune crooning can drag. [Mar 2015, p.76]

On his 24th solo album, the Guided By Voices man shows he still knows how to cobble together a sturdy, well-constructed song. [Apr 2016, p.78]

A stylistic leap forward. [Jul 2017, p.35]

Producer Kwesi Sey has upped the dramatic ante throughout. [Jul 2017, p.25]

Its 10 minimalist songs mine a vein of laconic broodiness. [Apr 2003, p.110]

Hardy's agile vocals and lyricism are never in doubt, but shine brighter on light touch arrangements. [Jun 2015, p.76]

For all its space-oddity trimmings, Feorm Falorx mostly sticks to Plaid's home planet, boldly going where they have been many times before. [Jan 2023, p.24]

Self-reflection is twinned with a rueful survey of the current state of the nation. [Oct 2021, p.25]

Unfussy poeticism abounds. [Oct 2020, p.27]

Patti Smith's bewitching poetry readings make this an experience that demands full attention. [Oct 2020, p.36]

A bravura production job, assisted by The Haxan Cloak, gives What's Between arcane depths. [Jul 2014, p.83]

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

Huge, head-rushing opener “Happy New Year” and sad banger “Hall Of Mirrors” exemplify the giddy “new” LEG, while the country-folk “Sunday”, powerfully harmonised “Strange Conversations” and Angel Olsen-ish title track are maturations of their earlier sounds. [May 2022, p.30]

Loving You is a poignant last statement, rich with nuance and personality. [Sep 2023, p.34]

The bereft “Have Mercy On Me” and hopeful, lightly gospel “I Have Wandered All My Unending Days” are particularly striking, while the concluding 11-minute instrumental mix works as metaphor for Cave’s faith: immersive and foundational. [Jul 2022, p.25]

Awash in plump brass, grainy mandolin and fuzzy warm electric piano, this solid second edges deeper into Fleet Foxes territory. [Apr 2013, p.78]

The wistful allure of the heady old days is strong as he ponders the sacred but mostly the profane alongside a fiery Lisa O'Neill on "Poca Mahoney's". But he also finds slapdash inspiration on his doorstep in bucolic Normandy. [Jun 2025, p.31]

Large, slow-drifting and majestic masses splinter into smaller sonic units, analogous to the glacial movements that signify environmental change. [Review Of The Year 2023, p.24]

He's hired JIm James, whose spiritual beliefs he seems to hare, along with a taste for cosmic rock and psychedelic blues, all of which figure on the compellingly heavy "Hey, No Pressure." [Apr 2016, p.75]

With Ash & Ice, they're back on compelling track, cranking their songs' rhythmic drive while focusing as much on structure as mardy atmospherics. [Jul 2016, p.75]

Gate Of Grief is admirably cliche-free and mostly excellent. [Sep 2018, p.39]

The songs' operatic grandeur evokes the music of Dead Can Dance and Diamanda Galas at its most epic-scaled. [Oct 2017, p.40]

VanGaalen's clear talent as a producer and arranger still shines through in even the less spectacular moments. [Oct 2017, p.40]