Too often, however, he's overshadowed by the phlegmatic vocals of pub rocker Roger C Reale, which means the most revelatory tracks here are the instrumentals. [May 2021, p.24]

Pete Townshend’s songwriting reaches deeper and wider with the unveiling of left field gem “Sunrise”, celebrated pocket opera “Rael” and the mighty “I Can See For Miles”. The band’s playful spirit also means it carries its conceptual weight lightly. [May 2021, p.46]

Oddly calming, even if it chills. [May 2021, p.24]

Great stuff. More please. [May 2021, p.27]

They’ve smuggled in sobering thoughts of isolation, loneliness and optimism’s perpetual challenge. But hope wins through with the sprightly funk and handclaps of closer “You Get Better”. [May 2021, p.25]

Highlights include Idles’ explosive “Peace Signs”; St Panther unlocking the irresistible pop heart of “One Day”; and “Love More” given a rhythmic, world-weary makeover by Fiona Apple. [Jun 2021, p.46]

Shake The Foundations is an accurate representation of its field, taking in both its achievements and its many foibles – a smart but patchy collection. [Jun 2021, p.47]

The likes of Khruangbin, St Vincent, fhoebe Bridgers and Josh Homme spice up Macca’s songs in their idiosyncratic fashion, while a few improve the originals. [Jun 2021, p.28]

It finds its sound in glowing electric waltzes, piled high with massed guitars and sawing fiddles, that take up a riff and grind it into extinction. Not to be missed, though, is their skill for softer atmospheres. [Jun 2021, p.27]

It’s hard to resist the sensory impact of these songs. Chemtrails picks up the nostalgic thread of 2019’s Norman Fucking Rockwell!, though here she’s mostly Midwest and more melodic. [Jun 2021, p.25]

Hanson has imbued this LP with a thematic and musical cohesiveness that makes it the finest record of his career to date.

It's excellent, with enchanting melodies, emotional depth and a few unexpected evolutions. [May 2021, p.26]

Tempers the sounds of traditional mountain music with a heady sense of experimentalism. [May 2021, p.28]

As familiar as a hug from an old friend. Yet the band's knack for colliding pop melodies with thrashing drums, pummelling bass and screeching guitars is as effective as ever. [May 2021, p.25]

It's a extended mediation on the expat experience, with yearningly hymnal renditions. [May 2021, p.27]

Off-kilter chamber pop telling ear-pricking tales: worth staying in for. [May 2021, p.31]

On "The Thing Itself" the pair are at their most graceful, rising airborne and serene above the disorder. [Apr 2021, p.27]

GVF strut and swagger through a sweeping hard-rock extravaganza that propels them from emulators to inheritors of a rich legacy. [May 2021, p.27]

First Farewell is wistful as well as smart and engaged. [May 2021, p.32]

White's material feels freer than usual, full of spirals of organ and keys, collapsing new rhythms and delirious jazz-funk riffs; Holley's one-take improvisation edge towards visionary incantations. [May 2021, p.35]

On This Is Really Going To Hurt, singer Will Taylor's characteristic black humour still cloaks the West Coast harmonies of "Everyone's A Winner," but the emotions cuts deep. [May 2021, p.27]

Once again transforms himself from a nerdy Clark Kent to a kickass retro-soul man, shapeshifting through Promenade Blue's 11 period-piece originals. [May 2021, p.35]

The result is an album of glorious hybridity, rooted in ancient griot tradition but serendipitously transformed into an audaciously cosmopolitan melting pot. [Apr 2021, p.28]

Offers the kind of transcendental electronics that burrow into your brain. [Mar 2021, p.37]

This ingenious successor to Computer World is enough to almost make one look forward to the coming robot wars. [Mar 2021, p.35]

The music is similarly diverse [as his guests], combining orchestral strings and beats, flamenco guitars and rap, and an array of other global styles. [May 2021, p.32]

As usual where Cheap Trick are concerned, the fast ones are much better than the slow ones. [May 2021, p.24]

A slice of life in all its messy, complicated and ultimately doomed glory. [May 2021, p.25]