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

Like the equally rapturous "Sun Giant" EP which preceded it, Fleet Foxes' debut album is a fastidious, sometimes overwhelmingly pretty evocation of the American wilderness; a dreamy companion piece to last month's superb Bon Iver album.

From clanging rock songs to eerie ambient pieces to sensual acoustic reveries, it's all highly detailed and perfectly weighted. [Aug 2008, p.98]

Growls and blast-beats come decorated with guitar work that explores scale after scale of diabolical pleasures. [Aug 2008, p.101]

This is too timid for modern R&B, too bland to rival Blige, and won't halt the sharp decline since 2003's "Rock Wit U." [Sep 2008, p.110]

It's appealing stuff--Lil Wayne is a fan--while the pair's wit suggests they'll continue to stay ahead of the critical curve. [Sep 2008, p.85]

While they are at their most comfortable when laying down the ZZ Top meets Black Flag hardcore boogie of 'Skull Socks and Rope Shoes,' it's difficult not to be charmed by their wit, style and salute to Southern rock. [Sep 2008, p.89]

Mark Ronson will be looking elsewhere for his next single. [July 2008, p.115]

There's brio and craft behind the cosmetic nostalgia. [July 2008, p.100]

The atmosphere is organic and engaging, the only problem being that amid the fug of good vibes, no one remembered to write a killer song. [July 2008, p.94]

Songs In A&E swells with tender, cautious optimism.

A facinating treatment, and really rather groovy. [Sep 2008, p.89]

Same Old Man won't upend the form-book, but it's an agreeably unpretentious addition to the Indiana-born veteran's canon. [June 2008, p.93]

Welcome is necessarily all over the place--and that place is pretty damn funky. [July 2008, p.108]

CD2 is a quirky new mixtape which proves he's still up to his old tricks. [Dec 2008, p.116]

It's occasionally redolent of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, but the likes of 'Hornett' retain a heady, defiantly exploratory quality. [Dec 2008, p.92]

The Pigeon Detectives' second in a year smacks of too much haste and too little thought. [June 2008, p.98]

Their primitive dance beats and carefree, nostalgic melodies recall Saint Etienne, and their endearingly earnest efforts to summer upon tracks such as 'No Excuses' and 'June Evenings' are a joy to behold. [Jan 2009, p.85]

Johansson’s bland, flat contralto leaves you admiring the Cocteau Twins-style sonic backdrops and wondering how another singer--Liz Fraser, perhaps?--might improve them.

The Lucky Ones frames this new worldview in a punchier, tauter, leaner sound--less fuzz but more crunch. [July 2008, p.104]

This is a less than ideal introduction to the oeuvre of the usually intriguing 'Dolls. [July 2008, p.93]

Hailing from the wrong coast, the Charleston, South Carolina-based Explorers Club have done the near-impossible, turning an obsession with everything Beach Boys into an utterly beguiling pop album. [June 2008, p.88

Lie Down In The Light is his most coherent LP since the bleak masterpiece "I See A Darkness." [Aug 2008, p.85]

Maybe it's not Albini's fault that El Rey lacks the melodic thrust of earlier projects, but this is wiry, unappealing fare. [July 2008, p.114]

Inherit strips back rock, baring its constituent parts without flourish or fanfare. [Aug 2008, p.93]

Rockferry is almost a very good album, but, for all the classic hallmarks, there's little insight into the soul of Duffy herself. [Apr 2008, p.84]

In a world of fast thrills, WAS remain admirably opaque. [Apr 2008, p.109]

This is the sound of a band surprising itself. [July 2008, p.92]