Acoustic without being folksy, poppy without being pandering, and quirky without being annoying. [Oct 2004, p.144]

They've retained some of the tighty wound post-punk angularity they've always favored and even bust a bit of old school punk, but the real advances are melodic. [Nov 2007, p.160]

The first great rock album of 2004. [May 2004, p.102]

Code Orange are riveting, the nihilistic horror of the whole thing at times overwhelming in the best possible way. [Oct 2014, p.98]

While devotees of Funeral... will surely enjoy Neon Bible, the album does have a decidedly different feel than its predecessor--mainly, there seems to be less of an emphasis on choruses. [Apr 2007, p.182]

While some bands might try to ignore the pressure that comes with a raised profile, Touche seem to have embraced it, producing their most frantic, panicked, passionate and best album of their career. [Oct 2013, p.81]

It's unnerving, exhilarating and surprising. [Feb 2017, p.80]

The Suburbs pulls back much of the meandering songwriting and garbled wall-of-sound production that marred most of Neon Bible; it's not perfect, but its moments of clarity make it worth the trip.

The Furries' songs have alwyas been strong enough to succeed without shock treatment, and these antics' absence means the addictive melodies of these classic, mostly straightforward pop and glam jams will just hit your bloodstream even quicker. [Sep 2003, p.104]

They do possess the skills to enhance everything they tweak. [May 2006, p.178]

Original, brilliant and so avant-garde that less than one percent of the population will be able to sit through it. [Jun 2003, p.110]

At times, the effect is akin to hearing Tortoise and Animal Collective covering the Steve Reich and Devo catalogs in tandem; but such reference points barely do justice to an album that just halfway through 2007, is already topping the year's best-of list in multiple genres. [Jun 2007, p.151]

Bon Iver is a brave change in certain places and only a careful departure in others, but its seemingly polar styles blend smoothly as only Vernon is capable of.

A short, quiet, and relatively still bit of genius. [#154, p.82]

The Blackest Beautiful is a brutally stunning document full of soul and purpose. [Aug 2013, P.88]

Its cleaner, more ferocious tone does this batch of songs well, pushing them back closer to their genius Nitro Records days.

It's Tony Clark's throaty, understated vocals and the way they complement the textured melodies, that really make Kingfisher stand out. [Sep 2014, p.110]

Attention Citizens of Warped: Life's Not Out To Get You is the album you've been craving. [Sep 2015, p.96]

It's roots music that hums and rattles, hearing the dissonant sound of America singing and finding beauty in the collision of opposites. [Apr 2003, p.73]

An intriguing debut. [Nov 2003, p.108]

There's no doubt their musical literacy is impressive, but for every cliche it erases, Rings Around The World embraces two more. [May 2002, p.98]

Three MVPs plus one vision equals one of the year's best. [Jun 2012, p.84]

Deerhunter have long proved themselves to be one of the most inventive bands around and the most deserving of the boatloads of hype and bandwidth that has been devoted to their work. Halcyon Digest solidifies that notion even as they sound like they are evaporating into the ether.

Dissociation might be the final stop on this journey, but in 10 years, it's also the first thing we'll point to when people ask why these guys are still relevant.

Ample evidence that Murphy is far more than a dance-club wiseguy who's too clever by half. [Apr 2005, p.128]

[Sheff's] uncompromisingly literate songs provide unusually rewarding payoffs. [May 2005, p.124]

It does serves as an excellent point of entry for a new generation of fans, while reminding the complacent rest of us how the character of Sacramento's finest continues to endure. [Dec 2012, p.89]

This is Calexico at their finest. [March 2003, p.86]