Easily one of the best debuts of 2012-or 2022, for that matter.

The album as a whole is multifaceted and full of variety, but always locked tight into a sound Yukon Blonde have perfected: punchy pop, straight up. [Apr 2012, p.99]

With Wreck, established fans have great reason to maintain their faith, while newbies may well have just found their new favorite band.

These shifting dynamics increase the record's overall potency, and while it makes an abrasive mark on first exposure, it grows more and more absorbing with each successive listen, making Black Breath one of premier heavy bands to be watching in 2012.

Pierce's vocals and playing reach higher and push farther forward than they did on previous albums. [Apr 2012, p.98]

In all, it's easily their most ambitious--and praiseworthy--effort to date. [Apr 2012, p.92]

Rot Gut, Domestic's melodies are still strong, but Edward's world-weary tenor to the bedeviled characters and prickly distortion, anxiety rules. [Apr 2012, p.96]

The trouble is, not much sets this new album apart from their career benchmarks, like 2002's Nothing or 1998's Chaosphere.

Power and passion haven't sounded this vibrant in a while.

Xerxes debut LP is a solid take on the burgeoning Pg.99/Modern Life Is War hybrid. [Apr 2012, p.99]

The songs of whiskey drinking, pretty girls and heartbreak are certainly Lucero's bread and butter, but stacked up against their back catalog, Women & Work plays it just a little too safe.

The songs are good, if a tad bit faceless. [Apr 2012, p.99]

Threads is compelling. [Apr 2012, p.98]

The result is an album that's equally pissed and poised. [Apr 2012, p.92]

Pure bubblegum, but with an often-faded flavor. [Apr 2012, p.98]

Challenging it's not, but its low-key loveliness makes it great for dinner parties where the company is almost as cool as Mercer's pre-Port track record. [Apr 2012, p.98]

Happy To You's charm does wear off in repeated listens, though, resulting in an album that's enjoyable, but far from life changing. [Apr 2012, p.96]

Not only does Fite sing more than speak-rap, he doesn't push oddity so hard. [Apr 2012, p.92]

The bulk of the album's 14 tracks find her playing it safe with a helium-voiced squeak reminiscent of (take your pick) Gwen Stefani, Santigold, Kate Bush or Cyndi Lauper. [Nov 2011, p.97]

The dozen tracks crackle with the energy of post-millennial British rock and the hook-lined swoon of the late-'80s British post-wave. [Sep 2011, p.120]

Unlike on Say Anything, though, DuPree-Bemis' presence this time around feels less shoehorned in, helping contribute to a loose, lively, fun record.

All that keeps Zoo from being a perfect record is the nagging feeling that Ceremony has even better work ahead. [Apr 2012, p.90]

Once you assimilate to his timbre, the earworm hooks and easygoing drive of Giant Orange will be a welcome salve to the wounded spirit. [Mar 2012, p.94]

A set track list and a few new tunes....[creates] a more well-rounded picture of the band than last year's smorgasbord. [Apr 2012, p.92]

The 15 songs here chart a typical course through the American songbook, with paradoxically straight-faced camp, morose show tunes and orchestral chamber pop without the aid of an actual orchestra. [Apr 2012, p.96]

Much of ex-Lives is encumbered by well-trodden ground turned muddy and attempts at atmosphere. [Apr 2012, p.96]

Gone are the Mary Poppins samples and the rest of the duo's anything-goes ethos; Breakfast is filled instead with Cap'n Crunch-y nuggets of pure, sweet, mainstream hip-hop. [Mar 2012, p.97]

Disappointing--and worse yet, faceless. [Apr 2012, p.99]

Jamie Stewart lyrically references previous Xiu Xiu material, masterfully turning over the stories to find more nuances within. [Apr 2012, p.99]

A strong sense of flow and cohesion also bolster Dark Adrenaline, giving fans 12 solid reasons to fall in love with the band all over again. [Feb 2012, p.84]

It's one hell of a ride.

The fantastic Ghostory actually sounds more realized than their previous two full-lengths. [Mar 2012, p.98]

Tennis offer a solid but unspectacular album by a band capable of great beauty but one who seem to struggle translating that into great songs.

Unlike Treats, Reign Of Terror never feels new, fresh or exciting; it just feels like a chore.

While longtime fans might chide the group for losing some of their quirkiness and streamlining their sound, the band's desire to push the boundaries should be commended. [Mar 2012, p.91]

It results in a dense, difficult grower of an album whose bombast slowly becomes charming swagger. [Mar 2012, p.96]

A crooning Busdriver is frequently more intelligible, revealing his sense of humor and beauty. [Mar 2012, p.94]

The result is near-perfection. [Mar 2012, p.97]

On the Impossible Past is an inspiring exploration of life as it should be--but rarely is--lived. [Mar 2012, p.98]

The band are probably a little too ambitious for their own good, but kudos to them for not holding back.

There's enough classic songcraft here to ensure Forgetting isn't forgotten. [Mar 2012, p.97]

Powerful riffs and jangly choruses propel everything in between. [Mar 2012, p.94]

His earnest vocals and easygoing spirit evoke both nostalgia and excitement for what may lay around the next bend in the road--a difficult feat he makes sound effortless. [Mar 2012, p.98]

Fans of the Cure's late '80s material will find much to love about No One Can Ever Know. [Mar 2012, p.99]

The heartfelt, piano-based "Do The Trick" is among guitarist/vocalist Scott McMicken's most accomplished songs--which can be said for nearly every boot-stomping moment here. [Mar 2012, p.97]

This album absolutely stands on its own, never requiring visual accompaniment; for Air fans, it's a vital addition to their catalog. [Mar 2012, p.94]

This is isn't a terrible album, but considering the rest of their vibrant catalog, it just seems a bit stale. [Mar 2012, p.98]

Garden Window's individual songs could stand to find better cohesion, but the band's quest for answers packs a consistent thematic punch, and certain musical moments that surface as a result of their boiling frustration are just spellbinding.

Invicta is a real treat. [Feb 2012, p.84]

Despite the obvious fun Foxy are having, the darkness that comes from balancing life and career ebbs just beneath the surface, bringing a depth that isn't immediately evident through the copious gloss and glitter. [Feb 2012, p.82]

One of the most honest albums we've heard in quite some time.

It's still loud, but he's trusting his songcraft and producing more sinister, elusive and substantial music. [Feb 2012, p.80]

Iron Balls Of Steel is as serious as a metal recording gets; and, at least until those new Meshuggah and Dillinger Escape Plan discs get mastered, it's also the greatest math-metal album of this still-young year.

It's a sharp effort taken in pieces, but as a whole, it's a little lacking.

It is a solid, exciting and ambitious album that proves is still a lot of mileage left in the band.

Nada Surf's blend of melancholy, anxiety and child-like optimism is fully intact on their first collection of original material in four years. [Feb 2012, p.84]

Everyone involved seems to simply be shrugging along in an almost cynical fashion, figuring people will buy it no matter what they do.

It's uncomplicated, catchy fun, the equivalent of 21st-century hair metal-and that's meant as a compliment.

This Means War exhibits admirable growth.

It doesn't push the envelope. [Jan 2012, p.97]

Enter Shikari prove that they have something substantial to say and a creative way of saying it.

What's left are halfhearted Hold steady wannabes and dull stabs at poignancy.

FYS are still trying to figure out just who they are and who they want to be musically, and ISWSOF accurately represents that struggle.

Every successful band eventually put out a bloated album, and for Northern Ireland's Snow patrol, it's Fallen Empires. [Feb 2012, p.84]

While they are accomplished musicians and combine their growling, death-metal-influenced moments with a wealth of shiny hooks, they fail to do so in a way that counts. [Feb 2012, p.84]

The ambitiousness, imagination and craftsmanship on display place Weightless in a class all of its own, stridently redefining the parameters of heavy music in 2011,. [Dec 2011, p.120]

With so much fertile ground to cultivate, though, Wolves Like Us seem less like copycats and more like proud bearers of a new tradition. [Oct 2011, p.112]

There's just incredible depth to The King Of Limbs, and if you're impatient, you'll miss it.

My Morning Jacket no longer sound like a band of curious adventurers perpetually at odds with their former selves, and consequently deliver an album that plays like a sort of kid-in-a-candy-shop, take-a-little-of-everything thrill ride. Predictably, results vary.

Bruiser is at its best when its tempos are insistent. [Apr 2011, p.114]

Cliff hasn't sounded this loose and giddy in years, and it's a thrill to find that side of him back in the music game.

While too many co-writers are often detrimental to an album, Red is pleasingly diverse-and more often stays true to the homespun, creative vibe of Frampton's previous releases.

Except for the dearth of truly original ideas, Love Part II is, at its core, just another Angels & Airwaves record--nothing more, nothing less. [Jan 2012, p.100]

Compromise is usually a dirty word in music, but here's one that really works. [Jan 2012, P.98]

The force of his personal aesthetics--coupled with the assistance of a similarly fearless group of friends-- has made for not only for one of the best albums of the year, but has produced evidence proving real artists simple don't settle, no matter how fast the calendar moves. [Dec 2011, p.122]

It must have been much more fun to record all of these tracks than it is to listen to them.

Distractingly crowded soundscapes throb like an all-night rave, leaving you too exhausted and battered to pay attention to the words, a major deficiency for a hip-hop album.

Decas is not exactly coherent listening experience. Still, it's a worthy addition to the band's weighty catalog. [Dec 2011, p.118]

Some Kind Of hate maintains the anthemic death-pop/metal trajectory Aiden started wit their previous release, Disguises. [Dec 2011, p.118]

While most of the songs boast their own distinct personalities, the whole record feels touched by a melancholy tone that recalls the end of summers past.

Recorrupted's five tracks make for a solid stopgap release.

Everybody Get Close is a digital-only, stop-gap collection of rare tracks, remixes and outtakes that will sate both the Juan-derful fans, as well as electronic dance music listeners who are too busy looking vacant to create their own playlists.

Polymers Are Forever makes the noblest of gestures-confusing the hell out of people who love their culture served to them on a stick while getting their fans psyched for a proper full-length early next year.

It's what fans have long been hoping for: an alum fill of catchy sing-alongs with substance. [Nov 2011, p.94]

Lyrically, Dowdalls covers familiar turf for the genre, mostly using the album's runtime to either lament or skewer past loves. It's perfectly appropriate and expected, but not as impactful as some of the recent works by TTNY's peers.

On their fourth full-length, they sound as menacing as ever. [Nov 2011, p.97]

My Brother's Ears/My Sister's Eyes is warm, engaged and driven by subtle, but forceful, optimism.

Childish Gambino is more than just a rapper, and Camp is more than just an album: It's a stone-cold classic.

One can only wonder how Sinners Never Sleep would have fared had it been more consistent. [Nov 2011, p.98]

His fourth album, This Is Our Science, proves the MC is equally as adept at improvisational freestyles as he is at crafting hooks that will stay lodged in your lobes indefinitely.

His band match his pain note-for-note for a brutal but rewarding listen. [Dec 2011, p.119]

Owen leave behind the emotional outbursts of his collaborations with his brother Tim in Cap'n Jazz, Joan Of Arc and Owls, but keep a quieter, suburban rage alive on his sixth album. [Dec 2011, p.121]

Like a late-night screening of Blue Velvet, it may be hard to get through, but impossible to ignore. [Dec 2011, p.121]

Really, Surfer Blood always reminds us so much of the Pixies, and that isn't changing much with Tarot Classics. [Dec 2011, p.124]

Surprises adorn "Control" and "Mother's Lullaby," too, demonstrating an impressively increased range from the usually hard-rockin' group. [Dec 2011, p.119]

Long Live The King, by comparison, sounds distinctly like a cutting-room-floor exercise--a collection of outtakes left behind not in the name of aesthetic cohesion, but simply because the group had better songs more deserving of release.

On his third solo album, Crow fully embraces his eclecticism. [Nov 2011, p.92]

The band sounds best when going for the mainstream-pop jugular. [Nov 2011, p.98]