No doubt Oyamada has a fine ear for sound design, but he handles his tunes with antiseptic gloves. [May 2007, p.88]

Talbot treads lightly, and a melancholy beauty predominates. [Jun 2012, p.73]

The dreary emotional content and the sub-MBV soundscapes set out to gaze enigmatically at their shoes. Sadly, they don't get past the navel. [dec 2008, p.115]

Those bel canto melodies will still be a little syrupy for some. [Jun 2007, p.94]

The Feist-like 'My Favourite book' and the triumphant 'Today Will Be Better, I Swear!' are songs of rare craft but you'll need to suspend disbelief to make it through to curtain-down. [Nov 2007, p.123]

Their choice of guest vocalists this time around indicates good tatse, although in practice there's not much call for subtlety in these chewy, club-oriented productions. [Sep 2009, p.95]

Dig deeper into This Is The Computers, recorded at the San Diego home of former Rocket From The Crypt man John Reis, and it's clear they have a pop heart. [Jul 2011, p.86]

Johnston's own songs, though jauntily paced, come with familiar themes of isolation, despair and the cruelty of love. [May 2013, p.73]

Spedding's ever-luscious quiff a measure of his stylish, if eternally backdated MO. [Mar 2015, p.83]

At times, mellifluous minimalism shades into mundane monotony, but these electro-mechanical reveries mostly achieve a kind of hypnotic power through accretion and repetition. [Jan 2017, p.24]

Happily, their third set rejects the sterility of 2004's When It Falls in favour of the kind of nuance-rich arrangements that give contemporary jazz-funk a good name. [Jun 2006, p.126]

There's a lurking suspicion of contrivance here, as opposed to the spontaneity that characterised Don't Give Up On Me. [Apr 2005, p.102]

It's the intoxicating instrumentals, "Boudica" and "In Motion Slow," that remind you of her capricious talent. [Feb 2012, p.91]

Playful homages to country at its most synthetic and dancefloor-friendly, “Better Than Any Drug” and “Fall In Love Again” bridge the gap that once existed between Madonna and the Mandrell Sisters. [May 2022, p.29]

The attempt to stir his inner shitkicking garagepunk isn't always successful but a handful of tracks here are creepily sensual. [May 2010, p.85]

Surprisingly invigorated. [May 2007, p.89]

For all their adroitness, most of the songs on Tonight sound too similar to each other (and to existing Franz Ferdinand songs).

There is beauty aplenty in these 10 songs, but anyone yearning for the delicious ache of old will find it only fleetingly. [Feb 2011, p.92]

Despite stuffing their saddle bags full of choice musical cuts old and new, The Middle East somehow contrive to sound like nobody but their own sweet selves. [Jul 2011, p.86]

It lacks the debut's punchiness, and a compelling thread to bind those disparate elements. [Oct 2014, p.67]

The duo seems to be pursuing a more focused vision than they do in the rambunctious, eclectic Men. [Dec 2014, p.75]

The results are terrific; which is odd. in a way, given the stark simplicity of Johnston's songwriting and BTS's reputation for angular and faceted. [May 2020, p.25]

This new album is a bit of a mess at times, though its scope is almost as impressively broad as its top-loaded guestlist. [Dec 2017, p.25]

The Aussie Maestros deliver seven concise tracks of electronica, largely indebted to Giorgio Moroder but with ventures into many of those elements Moroder inspired, from disco to techno and even jungle. [Dec 2023, p.33]

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

This luxuriant collection is one of Moby's most consistently inviting and uplifting in years. [Jul 2024, p.38]

The outcome isn't exactly surprising, as it falls in line with a relatively recent explosion in modular exploration (see Bitchin Bajas, Caterina Barbieri) but at times it is very beautiful. [Mar 2025, p.32]

After Ready For The Flood, Mockingbird time feels dense, and somewhat cluttered. [Oct 2011, p.85]