All up, a subtle repositioning that deserves attention. [Feb 2013, p.79]

If we can now safely conclude that the Pixies are unlikely to hit the heights of early days, then let’s face it, it’s the rare mortal who can; but it’s also the only slightly less rare mortal who can make albums as solidly good as this one. [Oct 2022, p.30]

Though not everything here works, Spiral remains consistently intriguing throughout. [Sep 2021, p.27]

Unfidelity is too turbulent to be purely scenic in the Boards Of Canada sense, its plaintive melodies hemmed in by the gurgles and clanks of some sinister, unmanned waste disposal plant. [Apr 2014, p.73]

[A] set of intense and committed songs. [Jul 2017, p.25]

Chris Spencer's vocals complete the darkly uncompromising picture, oozing a disgust and despair that's as much personal as socio-political. [Jul 2012, p.85]

The accent firmly on the spiritual. The stately "Family Bible" touches base with Willie's early career. ... There's a jubilant hoedown vibe to Hank Williams' "I Saw The Light," bettered only by offspring Lukas's plaintive lead vocal on George Harrison's "All Things Must Pass." [Jan 2022, p.27]

Though lacking killer songs, Wainwright is always a compelling vocalist, variously evoking Patti Smith, Debbie Harry and Piaf. [Dec 2016, p.38]

An unexpectedly impressive comeback. [Apr 2019, p.32]

Not all essential but a generally rich and respectable package. [Jul 2021, p.43]

The more spacious likes of "Comanche Moon" and "Life Song" suggest an ambition to nail a headline spot at the UFO Club, which may not boast much novelty a half-century after the fact, but can still elicit a contact high. [Jun 2017, p.23]

No overhaul then, but the BB alure still holds. [Nov 2022, p.26]

There's a level of quality control on this project, overseen by [Mute Records founder Daniel] Miller, that still allows Stewart to probe and provoke, but this time the medium of his message is more palatable. [Aug 2025, p.31]

The result is a fun mix of over-the-top hard rock, self-reflection and self-aggrandisation. [Aug 2025, p.29]

A tangy taster for their album proper in 2004. [Dec 2003, p.126]

A lack of polish--notably on the title track, which features Curl collective member Coby Sey--is part of the appeal, and if "Gladly" plays it very straight, then it's hard to carp at its loved-up optimism. [Sep 2018, p.39]

If there are a few stylistic surprises, there's spirit to spare on the invigorating "Easy Street" and the lusty, bluesy "Fast Lane." [Oct 2018, p.34]

Lanegan's lyrics are as daft as ever. But that growling baritone voice and the soundscapes are never less than compelling. [Nov 2019, p.27]

TMSR are a bit more focused and less shaggily psychedelic than [Broken Social Scene], but certainly never short on ideas. [Mar 2006, p.91]

[The Gossip] have evolved a blend of rough and impassioned garage-soul that owes as much to Tina Turner, Peggy Lee and The Ronettes as it does to Sonic Youth and The White Stripes. [Mar 2006, p.96]

There is a candid, personal quality to "Discreet" and "Have Fun Tonight," a sincere hymn to queer polyamory. Meanwhile, Chairlift's Caroline Polachek joins for the elegantly torrid "Togetherness." [Apr 2018, p.26]

Hammer Down may just be their best yet, the quintet's intense mix of mandolin, banjo and fiddle given added zest by a recent shake-up in personnel. [Feb 2013, p.79]

"White Horse" and the chest-thumping "South Dakota" recall the redneck drama of a Skynyrd show closer, and standout "Think I'm In Love With You" is a simmering mirrorball-country slow jam. [Review of the Year 2023, p.32]

"Fight The Good fight" and "A Humming Void An Emptied Place" feel like sorrowful hymns, Manuck's plaintive voice swaddled in electronics, but the album's highlight is "Do The Police Embrace?." poetic polemic that recalls Springsteen in its blend of melancholy and uplift. [Jul 2019, p.33]

Musically, it's business as usual as they follow up their 2010 debut with more indie pop infused with the melodrama of The Ronettes and The Shangri-Las. [Jun 2012, p.69]

This is inventive and witty stuff. [June 2002, p.126]

It's the smart pop and clever arrangements of "Glance" and "Songbird (Forever)" that suggest Whitelands are in danger of evolving into a heavyweight proposition. [Feb 2026, p.39]

Their pop songs always leave traces in the memory, but the real gems occur when they take it slow and low. [Nov 2024, p.43]