There's a striking purity to this record. [Mar 2012, p.79]

A typically assured piece of work. [Jun 2020, p.30]

If it sounds suspiciously of coffee table, it is. But the coffee is freshly grounded, and thr table an elegant modernist sculpture. [Nov 2008, p.119]

It’s astonishing that they managed to come up with several of the most thrilling pieces of primal UK R’n’B, before going on to invent the rock opera, following one of the more creatively intriguing examples of ’60s pop’s transition from mod to psychedelia.

A grown-up record that hints at a more excitable wayward past. [May 2009, p.91]

Generous of spirit and cutting-edge sound, Hopelessness is a statement for our times, and one that will not be easy to dismiss. [Jun 2016, p.63]

It's clear we're in for an introspective ride, though the more major-key, upbeat nature of many of the record's arrangements belie these melancholy undertones. [Oct 2021, p.29]

Dan Wriggins brings some of Lambchop's pained soul-baring to his vocals, and the band give him plenty of space while keeping songs interesting and dynamic. [Aug 2025, p.31]

What most impresses is its warmth, dynamism and unforced difference. [Jun 2015, p.84]

With the aid of some of the finest session musicians in Chicago, Hayes concocts a creamy rock'n'soul fantasy that answers the question: what if Jimmy Webb had teamed up with Thom Bell to write for Marc Bolan? [Oct 2009, p.98]

These diorama-songs of a Mayberry gone to seed don't sound to different from what you might hear on mainstream US radio--only much more lovingly observed and finely crafted. [Jul 2016, p.71]

It's striking to hear just how confident the trio now are, and how interwoven their playing is. [Aug 2019, p.18]

A record that achieves a great deal with only a few raw materials. [Jun 2015, p.73]

An album bursting with adventure and originality. [Jul 2014, p.83]

This female-fronted quintet continues to connect the tuneful aggression of Blondie with the SoCal sassiness of Rilo Kiley. [Aug 2012, p.71]

The result is a record that's technically adept, but full of heart, too. [Oct 2018, p.29]

The Animal spirits is earthy and tactile. [Dec 2017, p.23]

Welfare Jazz ratchets up the pizzazz. [Feb 2021, p.37]

It is often reminiscent of auntie's work, but with a solid beat underpinning. [Nov 2012, p.73]

While songs like “Nashville Mess Around” heighten the good-time vibes, Crooked Tree’s often playful manner is balanced by deeper considerations.

They've really only got one trick. But it's a treat, all the same. [Oct 2011, p.98]

The songs themselves range from ringing country-rockers to soulful ballads and vary shades between, thematically weighted between reflection and renewal. [Apr 2026, p.31]

Jump For Joy is a panoramic, magical reverie on the sometimes hard gift of a life in American music. [Sep 2023, p.36]

A set of 12 colour-saturated, avant electronic-soul tracks, where Sumney's extraordinary voice is strong, clear and central to the mix rather than one element of it. [Apr 2020, p.37]

Altogether, a fascinating portrait of a man making sense of both himself and his times. [Dec 2011, p.94]

The band has never sounded better, and Cave seems to have relaxed into the hysteria of his vocal style; like Elmer Gantry singing Leonard Cohen at a tent-revival.

This is inventive harkening, not witless revivalism. [Apr 2008, p.90]

A mood of high seriousness pervades, but Spirit Exit’s blend of spirituality and futurism is often transfixing. [Aug 2022, p.25]