He has gone for the full trip hop/psych-rock concept album--a major hazard given such previous near-missees as UNKLE's Psyence Fiction--but it's not at all bad. [Apr 2003, p.118]

The musicianship is slick enough, but if you thought their salt-of-the-earth fiddly folkie pose was a bit iffy, this is a whole new level of phoney. [Apr 2011, p.89]

Really, though, the whole--say, the bracing rock of 'Take Back The City'--is more than the sum of these parts, and underlines this album as a success in its field.

When the guitarist and singer pairs their familiar hard-boiled, in-the-red licks with Latin rhythms and transcendent B3 organ flights, the combination is revelatory. [Dec 2015, p.71]

The likes of the title track and "Sleep On The Floor" are pleasingly Ryan Adams/Gaslight Anthem-ish; elsewhere, as on "Gun Song" and "Angela" it all gets a bit Mumford & Sons. [May 2016, p.76]

Despite a top-drawer guest list, this often feels like empty bombast. [Mar 2007, p.98]

It's probably the most personal project of Gilmour's career. [Apr 2006, p.108]

It's a guarded affair, drawing from the same muted palette of emotions throughout. [Mar 2013, p.73]

It contains some amusing satires, some witty observations about the degeneration of rap and some why-oh-why philosophising. Some beats are a little dated. [Dec 2008, p.94]

Mostly sounds like a weary retread of 2005's superb Loneliness. [Jul 2006, p.95]

Sometimes beautiful, although an ADD-ish attention span means it occasionally comes off somewhat lacking in character. [May 2012, p.75]

The album flags a bit in the middle but maintains enough propulsion to easily glide past those saggy moments. [Dec 2023, p.34]

For their third album, Githead - that's Wire's Colin Newman, Robin 'Scanner' Rimbaud, and Malka Spigel and Max Franken of Israeli post-punkers Minimal Compact - have partly abandoned the sly hooks of 2007's well-named Art Pop In favour of a leaner and more ambient approach. [Jan 2010, p. 112]

The slick sequel starts strongly.... Alas, the album then falls into a compentent but monotonous groove of priapic Prince-old-porno-funk, its minor flashes of OutKast-style irreverence ultimately overshadowed by routine reto-pastiche. [June 2008, p.99]

A wicked, weathered stream of sinewy, shadowy songs. [Mar 2002, p.102]

Temples seem to be in the thrall of Tame Impala's retro-futurism, but their in-studio moves fall short of Kevin Parker's aerodynamic wizardry, although they come tantalisingly close on "You're Either On Something," nimbly balancing delicacy and majesty. [Oct 2019, p.36]

There's a sombre edge to almost all these songs, even when the Hammond organ is wailing and the backbeat is a mile wide.... Morello's presence is crucial to the tone of the album. [Feb 2014, p.65]

We Got A Love rarely deviates from DFA's tried-and-tested disco-punk template. [Apr 2014, p.81]

Producer Jari Haapalainen successfully blends it all together, but Karolina Komstedt's vacant vocals remian glacially unmoved. [Jul 2010, p.104]

Languid without being lazy. [Mar 2005, p.93]

Arcade Dynamics is marginally more developed than previous releases. [Mar 2011, p.88]

This is a good, not great record, which you probably don't need to hear, unless you're already immersed in Fennesz's world. [Oct 2012, p.79]

You long for a bit more of the ardour of "Fine Squad." [Mar 2015, p.73]

Adds extra confidence and clarity to the same basic ingredients. [Oct 2005, p.107]

The duo's sophisticated feel fro arrangement, the primary point of interest, is on display throughout. [Feb 2014, p.71]

Inhabiting the same last-dance ballroom as Portishead's noir torch songs, this monument to ennui is prettily impressive. [Mar 2006, p.90]

A collection of unabashedly hooky '80s-informed rock songs. [Mar 2019, p.30]

The New York threesome have just about enough tunes to pull it off. [Jun 2009, p.93]