Mostly a blast of fun.

As a whole, the release is a bit stronger on the front end, but it's charming enough for the duration that a couple weaker (and somewhat repetitive, given the bands thus-limited oeuvre) tracks don't hold it back too much.

In the end, the nine songs and fifty-five minutes of Sound Of Silver find LCD Soundsystem really hitting a stride. It's no less playful, but at the same time it's more focused and varied. This is one I'm glad I gave a chance.

In the end, it's not as excellent as their early work, but still pretty entertaining.

At the end of it all, Guns And Drums feels more like an inconsistent experiment than a full fledged step forward.

As a whole, the album doesn't stand up quite as well as The Mysterious Production Of Eggs, but it's still another solid entry in Bird's discography.

It doesn't always work, but there are more than enough explosive moments to pick up the slack.

Essentially, Person Pitch is an amazing third album from the young musician, on a par with the best work of the Animal Collective. Striking just the right balance between melody, song, and experimentation, it's one of the best albums of the year so far.

[Myth Takes] basically finds the group taking the best parts of their past releases and improving on them in dramatic ways.

For the most part, it's the sophomore release without the stumble.

In concept (and on the accompanying DVD), The Foley Room is a heck of an idea and meticulous in production and sound. Musically, though, the end result isn't the best work from Tobin.

One of my favorite albums so far in this very young year.

It pays off big time in places while feeling a bit hesitant in others.

If you're a fan of the group through thick and thin, there will definitely be enough to love here. If you want to know the best place to start with Trans Am, that place is still Futureworld.

Definitely a bit more hit-or-miss than some of his past work.

As always, Can Cladders is immaculately-produced, with an airy feel that emphasizes the breezy songs.

Dip is sort of an awkward sidestep in a new direction for Moffat, but it's still rewarding in places if you have the patience.

Loney, Noir is an excellent little album and a great precursor to spring that seems so far away right now.

An excellent third album from the Swedish trio, Writer's Block should make sure that the group remains in obscurity no more.

Although it's definitely a bit bi-polar, Cryptograms still gets high marks for offering up a slew of great tracks and actually gaining strength the longer it goes on.

WIncing The Night Away as a whole is both inconsistent and even odd in sequencing.

Downright awesome in places.

[The] longer track... just completely derails what would otherwise be a fairly solid and concise album.

It's definitely about as disjointed as they come, and while that loose style seems to invigorate some tracks, it makes for a release that's downright hard to listen to in places.

A knockout of an album.

Despite the inconsistencies, Hello Everything is one of the best things that Jenkinson has done in some time.

There's still not really anyone out there creating music quite like this, but unfortunately The Blood Brothers have made better albums than this.

At times enjoyable, at other times somewhat bland, And The Opera Circuit is a somewhat inconsistent follow-up release from the young artist.

Over quiet, shuffling drum machine beats, the two spill out woozy guitars, vocals, and organs into slightly off-kilter pop nuggets that sound like they could have been made at any point in the past thirty (or more) years.

Human Animal certainly isn't something I'd want to pull out on a regular basis, but there's some beautiful evil I can appreciate on this one.

Dense and substantive, Return To Cookie Mountain is a nice head-trip to take.

Even more engaging than their debut, So This Is Goodbye is another amazing album from Junior Boys, and one of the better releases of the year.

Easily the most plain-sounding album that LaValle has released to date.

In the end, Varcharz feels like an in-betweener album, where the duo hasn't quite figured out which direction they want to move in next.

At times outstanding and at others a bit frustrating, Slappers is a bit too uneven to be essential.

As a whole, The Body The Blood The Machine is a bit more inconsistent than Fuckin' A, but at the same time has some of the best songs in the group's discography and some of the better arrangements [as] well.

Like his debut, it could use a bit more focus and some editing, but the basement hits feel is part of the charm with VanGaalen.

When they keep things a little more subtle, Silent Shout is outstanding, but in other places it's just sorta there.

Basically, Cansei De Ser Sexy sounds like a thirty minute dance party full of shouted vocal lines and vapid lyrics.

Radiohead fans will obviously want to snag it up, but if you’re looking for melancholic electronic pop, there’s much better to be found.

A highly entertaining album, and perfect for blasting during hot summer days.

Despite her pushing slightly forward with her unique sound on this newest release, Son just doesn't engage me as much as I thought it would.

Free jazz fiends and fans of the first volume will find plenty to love here.

Instead of exposing any weaknesses, the group has highlighted their strengths by stripping things back to their essentials for A Vintage Burden.

A highly enjoyable album that doesn't beg to be parsed too deeply.

Something like the Polyphonic Spree might sound if they decided to freak out a bit more, Danielson is a whole load of friends getting together under the banner of having a good time and creating some enjoyable music.

An outstanding debut album, and easily one of my favorite releases of the year so far.

The main problem haunting Denies The Day's Demise is the same one that holds back several past releases from Daedelus. While the release is cohesive and fairly entertaining, it could have used a bit more editing in terms of overall running length.

There are several places where the disc seems to lapse into very familiar territory, and at other times it definitely feels like it's coasting a bit.

While the group are certainly impressive in performance, they can't break free from an almost mechanical feel that lingers and really holds the album back.

This album is a great deal of fun.

Despite some tracks that take immediate hold, it's another album that takes a little bit of simmering to really sink in.

Fans of My Morning Jacket will most likely love this release, and I'm sure those who followed Carissa's Wierd will want to hear what half of that band has been up to since calling it quits.

For fans who are obsessed with seeking out everything Animal Collective, Black Dice, and experimental noise related, it's a fine bet, but for others this is going to rub the wrong way, which I suppose is part of the point.

Push The Heart is easily the most developed batch of songs from the group, easing through ten assured tracks of soft orchestral pop.

This is nicely-conceived pop music that keeps things concise and interesting.

There are moments where the two seem to sync up nicely and really unveil something beautiful and unique, but there are far too many other passages where the pairing doesn't quite seem to fully jel.

If you like instrumental hip-hop and don't mind a few tracks with vocals (most of which are quite well done), Soft Money is worth checking out.

The Humbucking Coil doesn't really tread any new ground for Fleischmann, but it's another enjoyable and solid little release in his discography.

Even though it's downright schmaltzy at times, Sun, Sun, Sun is such a warm, inviting record that I've found myself going back to it time after time.

Arriving somewhere between the newer work of Styrofoam (on Morr) and The Postal Service, Electric President mainly dabbles in melancholy-tinged tracks with a couple bursts distributed through the album for good measure.

At times, the album gets a little too sappy for its own good, but it's never enough to derail things.

It was a valiant try, but Tiny Cities just doesn't have a lot going for it unless you're a die-hard fan of Kozelek.

One could argue that it sounds like a different group on this release, and technically it is. Still, if you like the last album from Rogue Wave, I can't imagine you going wrong with this one.

A glorious, noisy, melodic, celebratory release from the ever-inventive group.

I don't fault them for trying some new things, but the results are mixed at best.

It's not quite as engaging as Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds, but in a pinch it will do.

If I want to hear something where a load of people are having a blast and making a racket by smashing styles together and singing silly songs, I'm gonna reach for The Go! Team. They're probably just as irreverent, but they're not nearly as annoying.

Cinder isn't an album that wallops you over the head at any points, but wins you over with steady and solid songs.

The album is almost all hooks, and like most albums of said variety, it's a load of fun but doesn't always stick to your ribs.

Given the past work from the group, Gimme Trouble is a major curveball, seemingly reveling in just about everything tacky about electroclash.

In places, the group seems like they're being almost willfully difficult, and yet it often makes for darn good listening.

Yes, the almost nonsensical, stream-of-consciousness lyrics are still there, but the sense of songwriting, melody, and even depth of instrumentation has been expanded upon.

A lot different than the release under his own name, Audion is enough to make you sweat a bit whether you use it for dancing or as a soundtrack for *ahem* other activities.

They take their rough charm and run with it, continuing the giddy momentum they hinted at on [their self-titled] EP.

It's something that could appeal to everyone from fans of Can to Fela to Kompakt. This is inspiring stuff.

It's not quite along the same lines as the ultra-drastic change from Start Breaking My Heart to Up In Flames by Manitoba/Caribou, but it's a somewhat similar jump.

All of the interesting parts of his music are still here, he's just written an album that plays up his strengths in more measured ways. The result is easily his best release to date.

Although the album isn't groundbreaking, it does contain several new wrinkles in sound for the group, and most of them work quite well.

In terms of overall sound and cohesion, it's a step up from the debut by the group, but it's almost clinical in precision and slightly numbing with riff after riff blasting away with the same sort of glossy production.

Imagine a highly narcotic Shins with even more subtle instrumentation and you're getting somewhere close.

Good, but not outstanding.

While these experiments don't always quite work, at the very least the group isn't falling into a rut.

Stevens is simply one of the most talented artists creating music right now, period.

[Ounsworth's] weird quirks do grow on you, especially because the music backing him is so solid most of the time.

[Most] of the album just sort of swirls through some nicely-produced, but ultimately not very engaging sonic fluff.

Much of the sharp rhythm programming and quick dynamic changes that marked her previous effort is replaced with more straightforward 4/4 beats and relentless dirty basslines that unfortunately repeat themselves to the point of annoyance.

We Are Monster is one of those fun albums that sounds great whether you're in the mood to move or just sitting down and listening on headphones as you ride to work on the bus.

The album just doesn't have the innovation that previous albums from Hebden have shown.

Fans of each respective artist may scratch their head a bit when first hearing 13 & God, but it will mostly make sense after awhile. If it doesn't, it's probably not supposed to.

On first listen, it's not as immediately accessible as Up In Flames... [but it] reveals itself in several listens and contains yet another batch of fearless tracks from an artist who simply refuses to sit still.

If you haven't discovered the group yet, by all means snap up this lush slab of synth pop.

It's a melodic, pop album that doesn't pay attention to any typical structures or formulas, and Adam Pierce has pulled off another winner.

It's kind of a whopper to digest all at once, but if you've heard Momus before and liked him, you're not going to go wrong here.

If you were a bit let down by the last Bright Eyes album (as I was), this is a release that should get you excited again.

There are times where the release feels like a transitional effort, yet it also contains some of the best songs that they've ever done.

The first album from the group that feels downright tedious to me in places, as well as the first one that feels like they're spinning their wheels a bit.

Let Us Never Speak Of It Again is at the same time better than Street Dad in several ways, but also much more indulgent (sometimes in bad ways) than its concise predecessor.