Takes a step back to the crossroads of the accessible and the head-scratchable. [Oct 2004, p.148]

They're so busy crafting the perfect pop song... that they've made a uniformly dull album. [Sep 2003, p.102]

The London-based compulsive hair-dyer follows 2007's soulful breakout "The Magic Position" with the luxurious sounds of The Bachelor, the first half of a double album to mixed results. [Sep 2009, p.108]

Not every song hits the mark, but the Monkeys should be applauded for spreading their wings and not dropping like stones. [Sep 2009, p.100]

Building on the same base that made his early material brilliant (a love for both odd sounds and cheesy pop), Warren has painted himself into a musical corner: knowing its hard to get any listener to swallow the same thing repeatedly outside the mainstream market, but also wanting to indulge his muse. [#151, p.78]

For now, this stands as another good if inessential addition to their catalog-a phrase that, for better or worse, applies to the majority of their output.

For the target audience, such education lines as "K is for kid fart/L is for long and loud farts" will leave house apes wondering what the fuck they ever saw in "Wheels On The Bus." [Oct 2008, p.153]

The trouble is that their debut album is saturated with the kind of contrived angst that seems to always maintain a level of popularity with upper-middle class white kids who don't pay their own bills yet. [Mar 2009, p.107]

While all the riffs and parts are brillantly performed, they rarely if ever repeat one, and none stick in your head after the band is gone. [Dec 2009, p.108]

The best songs are, as usual, the weirder ones... Elsewhere, Balls spends too much time riding the same quirky-dance autopilot that has fascinated Sparks since the late '70s. [Jan. 2001, p.102]

Both Sole's most accomplished album and his least distinctive. [Apr 2005, p.130]

The album runs out of steam toward the end, but the first few tracks are gold. [Nov 2009, p.109]

Though the album gets too repetitive, the uniformity of Acolyte still serves the band's purpose: Make the floor move.

Educational and motivational. [Jul 2003, p.126]

Call it growing pains for a storied discography, but the result leaves the album feeling unbalanced around the gems and less rewarding over multiple listens. [Sep 2014, p.110]

With this soft-spoken and delicate record of almost-drawling songs, he's moved his work one step closer to Nashville. [Mar 2002, p.81]

Lewis still sounds like she's trying to figure out where she belongs. [Feb 2006, p.118]

For the most part, the band's jagged guitars and bludgeoning backbeats play by the punk rulebook. [Jul 2006, p.186]

A solid album, but a must-have only for Tweedy completists. [Apr 2003, p.82]

Until Reptar develop their own voice, they have to keep making up for their derivative music with enthusiasm. [Jun 2012, p.82]

On some songs... the cutting-and-pasting fails to produce anything new, but a handful of others blend their textures beautifully. [Sep 2004, p.122]

The results of this experiment is decidedly mixed. [Oct 2014, p.101]

Sweaty and thick, convincingly urgent and highly sexual. [Jul 2006, p.210]

Records like this deliver atmosphere and little else, and most of Pelo's 10 tracks make a point of ending two minutes later than they logically should, but still, feel-good artsy pop has never felt bubblier or more confident. [#151, p.72]

So it is wuth British quintet Hot Chip, whose progression toward traditional songcraft has reached a satisfying plateau. [Mar 2010, p.94]

On Fever, it's all about the harmonized riffs and the high-flying melodies interlocking with the type of rhythmic thud that feels like it could move the earth--and the pop charts. [May 2010, p.104]

The Offspring once again demonstrate this knack for incorporating flavor-of-the-month flourishes into their sound in tongue-in-cheek fashion.... These embellishments aside, the Offspring hone in on the dyed-in-the-wool cheetah-paced punk that is their true bread and butter. [Jan 2001, p.81]

Decidedly mellow and acoustic in nature, 'Excuses' continues [Neil] Halstead's love affair with country, folk, and pop.... masterfully written, recorded, and played. [#147, p.103]

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.

It's a bit unfortunate that the Irishmen decided to keep their songwriting and musical prowess stagnant. [Mar 2007, p.143]

An accurate representation of the prolific group's career. [Aug 2004, p.106]

¡Tré! feels scattershot and slapped together, making it difficult to enjoy on its own merits.

La Luna's overall style is ambient industrial, with a hypnotic, grinding pulse and pounding kick drum, embellished by sporadic rhythmic tappic, guitar growls and strange electronic squiqqles... and while Czukay's industrial groove is righteous, 47 minutes of it is excessive. [Jan 2001, p.87]

A record of bittersweet delights that resonates with the brain and the heart. [Nov 2004, p.149]

It's something they've done better before. [May 2007, p.158]

Youngster is only temporarily satisfying. [June 2008, p.135]

The signature '97's twang takes a backseat to finely tuned pop songs. The downside? It falls short of going anywhere new musically. [Jul 2009, p.130]

Even if Oxeneers doesn't move you, it'll surely floor you. [Dec 2004, p.157]

There’s enough inventive, Jamaican-inspired music on Free The Universe to make it worth hearing--but here’s hoping Diplo keeps things Kingston-centric again next time around.

Unfortunately, the tinny stutters and retro keyboards... drag when they're not amped up on desire. [Dec 2003, p.158]

Instead of building on their strengths, frontman Jaz Coleman & Co. have backslid into subdued sogginess of the band's mid-period. [Jan 2010, p.91]

The disc is at least 20 minutes too long, with Slug coming off like he's simply recycling the same lyrical ideas in the last third of the album. [Jun 2014, p.104]

Matt and Kim deserve albums that sound clean and ambitious, but in all of Sidewalk's studio processing, their endearing personalities--decidedly brash, raw and awesome--unfortunately aren't well-represented. [Jan 2011, p.93]

There are way too many cooks in this kitchen. [May 2011, p.91]

The energy makes it feel like there's too much going on, leading to songs blending structurally, downplaying hooks.

At their best, the churning rhythms, swirling synth and vocals suggest Animal Collective digging through a crate of DFA Records. [Mar 2014, p.94]

Walls tends to fade into the background during its instrumental moments, dulled by textures and emotional ebbs that aren't very distinctive. Better are sharper rock songs. [Aug 2009, p.115]

The band takes a few sucessful detours on Chase This Light, but by and large, it's more of the same. [Nov 2007, p.172]

Their newfound nods to pop music... overshadow the expected balls-out rockers. [Apr 2006, p.220]

Where the band struggle is writing memorable tunes. [May 2014, p.91]

These four songs fulfill expectations for minimalist, rhythm-based deconstructions of genre. [Feb 2010, p.93]

There's generally more of the same here, but Doves' alternate influences this time around... don't exactly add up to a great band "stretching out." It's more like they're grabbing at straws. [May 2005, p.134]

Unfortunately, everything is so finely polished on Alternative To Love that his brand of rock lacks any grit. [Apr 2005, p.124]

The Lemonheads is the album Dando should have made 10 years ago, and poppy punk ain't what it used to be. [Nov 2006, p.200]

The Invisible Band has more layers, more moods than ever before, and more tunes as well. [July 2001, p.88]

If he isn't a sage yet, he does sound like a future star. [Feb 2005, p.94]

While Boo! is far less indulgent than JOA's most experimental records, it remains a far cry from Kinsells's earliest work in the mid-90s emo forefathers Cap'n Jazz. [June 2008, p.131]

Considering how strong a songwriter Bazan has proved himself to be on the last few Pedro discs, the results here are mildly disappointing. [Jun 2005, p.164]

While Personality is all masterful and ambitious, nothing really sticks in the end. [Sep 2006, p.232]

A scappy but lovable collection of power pop. [Oct 2008, p.152]

Repetitious choruses and monotonous, middling tempos make the songs blur together. [Oct 2003, p.126]

All too often it feels like the band are ignoring the part of their name that gives them carte blanche to experiment and toy with expectations.

A bit flat. [Jan 2007, p.131]

Only the blindly in love will fully appreciate Suitcase, which is chock-full of bruised and blemished tracks, though it's not all throwaways. [#147, p.94]

Yes, it sounds like Yes, and, no, I don't mean that in a good way. [Nov 2003, p.99]

There's nothing surprising or too far outside their comfort zone.

Tracks like "Terra Firma" evoke every new-age-groove cliche imaginable, from Gregorian chants to pan flutes to politely understated hip-hop beats. [#152, p.74]

Considering how much it costs to get Rick Rubin in the producer's chair, it's no surprise Gogol Bordello aim for something beyond full-throttle drunken mayhem on Trans-Continental Hustle. Those worried the party is officially over can rest easy, as "Break The Spell" and "We Comin' Rougher (Immigraniada)" show Gogol Bordello haven't completely forsaken four-on-the-floor folk punk. [June 2010, p.105]

Although a less consistent effort as a whole, Time Bomb is a lot more fun than its predecessor and suggests capacity for songcraft not evident on the band's debut. [#154, p.66]

The collection as a whole has a transitional feel, as though Jamie T is still finding his way between the two poles of his primary inspiration. Yet with his propensity for both engaging storytelling and hooks, he's too talented not to figure it all out in spectacular fashion.

At times, the disc trades solid shoegazing for a slip into blase modern rock, with songs that beg for broadcast next to STP and Third Eye Blind; ultimately, however, Gwenmars' recasting of the dark British sounds that lent depth to sunny American movies is intense and compelling. [#153, p.75]

Unfortunately, as with many Verve albums, Bar's dreamy tempos and strung-out riffs, while fragile and beautiful, start to fade into a middling mess of sameness around the middle of the disc. [March 2003, p.98]

Avenged Sevenfold is so all over the map musically and lyrically, it's difficult to decipher whether it's pure genius or the most convoluted mess of music you'll hear all year. [Dec 2007, p.178]

Between the bloated song lengths and repetitive arrangements, What Angels & Airwaves really need for LP3 is an editor. [Dec 2007, p.184]

The music, more polished and synthetic than ever, is fine.... But too much of this album comes off like self-parody. [Oct 2013, p.92]

Misguided in points, Contra shows a more accomplished and daring Vampire Weekend--albeit a less endearing one. [Feb 2010, p.97]

While the positive vibe is admirable, there's just not much substantial to grab on to--and few songs linger after the album's over.

The Fratellis may have simply have heightened our expectations by sounding too good too soon. [Aug 2008, p.170]

After blowing out of the gate with the blondie-tinted delight 'Ecstatic Appeal,' Pearl ends up coasting on fumes. [Nov 2009, p.114]

Temper Temper probably sounds great played in an arena. But on the stereo, it just isn't enough. [Mar 2013, p.90]

On Sunshine and a handful of others, she's M.I.A. protege in Kala mode; elsewhere, she's been "optimized" for a climate more partial to Nicki Minaj. [Jun 2012, p.84]

Jaill's pacing and musical phrasing feels noticeably lethargic. [Jul 2012, p.94]

Had these songs been released a decade ago, they'd be a sensation. Today? Nah. [Jun 2014, p.105]

The baby-making music never reaches above its already-set guidelines to become something truly special, preferring to explore already charted (and re-charted) territory. [Apr 2007, p.180]

The Most Serene Republic play it incredibly safe while maintaining thier baroque-rock rep. [Aug 2009, p.111]

The absence of Paul Leary's drug-fried guitar is unconscionable. [Nov 2001, p.78]

Telepathe should be appauled for making a challenging record; though it frequently doesn't hit the mark, there's plenty for fans of minimalism to get excited about. [Mar 2009, p.116]

The high points find the Men melding their overmodulated past with their new melodic obsessions. The low points render the band mere pretenders to outfits like Guided By Voices and Spoon. [Apr 2013, p.90]

While electronic music fans are not always a lyrics-first bunch, the sentiments here will probably sound better shouted at Glastonbury or Coachella than examined via earbuds.

Multicultural rage is all well and good, but when you cop your flow from Vanilla Ice, it undermines your underground cred. [Jan 2002, p.98]

There's always been a heavier influence in the band's music, but on Arrows & Anchors, their ambitious desires to step outside the genre box often get bogged down in a sea of down-tuned guitar and maudlin lyrics.

There’s passion cooked into each Antemasque song, but it is curiously unmoving.

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

The Chemical Brothers seem adrift and directionless. [Mar 2005, p.138]

Without the extra bells and whisteles--which alwways saved the weakest Faint songs in the past--most of Faciinatiion is largely dispoable. [Sep 2008, p.160]

While Twelve's not an unlistenable record by any stretch of the imagination, it just begs the question: What's the point? [Jun 2007, p.158]

The bulk of Somewhere Gone brings to mind a bummed out, burned out Neko Case. [Nov 2009, p.109]

Beta Love feels too much like the band's token electronic record. [Feb 2013, p.92]