Braid have delivered a record as nuanced, vitalizing and brilliant as anything in their already storied back catalog, reemerging as strong as any of the numerous bands that have popped up to critical notice in their wake.

No one will argue 5 Seconds Of Summer is high art, but it ultimately works more often than it doesn’t. And, perhaps most important of all, it feels authentic.

This band may be close to two decades and seven albums in, but in these here Parts, Every Time I Die are coming out of the box like airborne wolverines lunging for the world’s carotid arteries.

Guitarist Brian Izzi is given room to throw in engaging staccato wrist flicks or caveman his way through a down-picked sequence while vocalist Ryan McKenney is able to focus on exorcising his demons without worrying about time and tempo changes. [Jul 2014, p.103]

Taken in one healthy, heroic dose, Typical System feels like a dazzling glimpse into the future of underground rock. [Jul 2014, p.102]

Chicago's The Atlas Moth have taken definite and deliberate steps to flesh out their wall of sound on album No. 3, accentuating their sludge roots with waves of psychedelic counterpoint. [Jul 2014, p.96]

They’re obviously still working out the kinks that come with stepping out of one’s comfort zone, but all in all Let The Ocean Take Me is an encouraging signpost that sees the Amity Affliction slowly tearing up the blueprint that drove their early works.

While dissonant noise is the main component of the duo's slacker shoegaze, hidden beneath those layers of distortion are some moments of melody. [Jul 2014, p.102]

What glosses over those small, weird choices is the collective strength and sense of purpose found here.

With a renewed, stripped-down focus, Fortune is some of their best stuff yet. [May 2014, p.88]

It starts off strong... While the slow chug of "Divide" and the somewhat MOR jangle of "Teen Rocket" might have worked better as B-sides, they get it spot-on with "Wnat Would You Do." [Jul 2014, p.102]

This is a farewell album, but the band are going out at full strength. [Jun 2014, p.104]

Ultimately, this is a forceful, headlong album with no ballads or restful interludes among its 10 tracks. [May 2014, p.91]

Cheap Girls’ songs blur together--hell, so do their albums--but it’s something to take a deeper look at.

Instead of burying their influences in a wall of sound on If Anything, Greys bring them right out into the open. [Jul 2014, p.98]

It's 22 minutes of thoughtful, intricately expressed vexation like never before. [Jul 2014, p.103]

Bemis may have grown up, but he's still a master at crafting poignant lyrics that take a sharp look at his fears of becoming irrelevant and thoughts about God. [Jul 2014, p.97]

The vocals are one of the duo's strongest points, but the entertaining and skillful guitar work is right up there, as is the songwriting dynamics and arrangement prowess. In other words, everything about this one is a winner.

Wait Barbarians is not an album for all moods and times of day. But for those calm, reflective moments that tend to arrive as dusk descends, this albums provides the ideal soundtrack. [Jul 2014, p.102]

Everything from the swirly, '90s guitars to the harmony-laced background vocals just scream a band gazing far beyond their genre trappings. [Jul 2014, p.102]

Somehow, this record sounds like it's skipping or running at the wrong speed, yet completely natural all the while. [Jul 2014, p.100]

The vocals are almost hilariously monotone, the lyrics loaded with crass, elementary rhymes, and the instrumentation is simply dreadful. [Jul 2014, p.98]

Lazaretto finds him simultaneously unbridled as a player, yet meticulous as both mad scientist and personal diarist.

All Osborne's vocal and instrumental hallmarks--including enigmatic lyrics and track titles--are in place, so it's not really a departure, but it's also too good to be shrugged off as for Melvins fans only. [Jul 2014, p.100]

Black Hours [is] loaded with familiar falsetto swoops, cutting middle range and observation mixed with self-reflection. [Jul 2014, p.98]

Score yet another triumph for a man whose legend continues to grow. [Jul 2014, p.98]

The connecting factor between the songs is the laconic, melancholy spirit Margot have perfected. At times the weight can feel too heavy and risk putting the listener into a lull.

Easy Pain reminds you how horrible the world can be, as well as the catharsis you can achieve if you'd only just immerse yourself in the maelstrom. [Jun 2014, p.111]