Experienced, acclaimed groups rarely make albums as bold and confrontational as Stankonia, because they have too much to lose. OutKast don't care.... The Atlanta duo coalesced the political and societal challenges of hip hop's past into what is one of the genre's most artistically unortodox releases so far. [12/2000, p.108]

The results are extraordinary. [May 2012, p.79]

All invention and no indulgence. [Jun 2004, p.110]

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

Lost In The Sound Of Separation is truly 2008's first perfect record. [Sep 2008, p.145]

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.

“Without Any Words (Only Crying And Laughter)” harkens back to the magnificent Gun Club, while “This Life Is Old” will have Jack White wondering who the hell these guys are, anyway. Because Scogin and drummer Michael McClellan bring the noise in the most righteous ways. ... Two Parts Viper is the best record of the year.

Their stripped-back and organic-sounding punkish indie rock recalls early Jimmy Eat World, Texas Is The Reason, the Appleseed Cast, Penfold and the Weakerthans, and this album sees them stand toe to toe with any one of those bands, which is admirable to say the least.

Has as much to do with Ray Davies as it does with hip hop and garage. [Jul 2004, p.148]

This collection of songs finds the band both maturing nicely, and as close to flawless [as] they've ever been. [Oct 2015, p.94]

Delivers the goods in spades. [Nov 2001, p.94]

It's ridiculously ambitious--and consistently surprising. [Aug 2005, p.164]

They've returned fully charged on the triumphant No Cities To Love. [Feb 2015, p.94]

Few records this year will be able to compete with the heart or hooks of this one. [Apr 2014, p.89]

Worsnop may be gone, but the rage channeled into The Black has helped the group lift themselves back onto their feet, showing they are more than capable of carrying on without him.

While Original Pirate Material isn't as good as the U.K. press hyperbole would have us believe, it does prove that sentiment and sincerity are more interesting than slickness and skills. [Dec 2002, p.96]

Alice is unique within Waits' unique discography, and it may be his most fully realized work. [Jul 2002, p.96]

Strikingly beautiful pop songs. [Nov 2004, p.142]

While The Finer Things may be fashionably late for this summer, it’ll sure as hell hold you over to the next one.

Z is their OK Computer, an album of scope and resonance that lasts far longer than its 40-minute run-time. [Oct 2005, p.162]

The band still maintain their status as leaders. Frontman Jacob Bannon is physically incapable of phoning in his performances, and always ready to bring the fear. Kurt Ballou’s guitar work is a joy to experience, whether he's carpal tunneling through downstrokes, picking out lyrical phrases to frame Bannon's ominous moments (“Thousands Of Miles Between Us”) or bringing the straight-up noise like a hateful glass-bomb explosion ("Under Duress").

Consists entirely of samples yet sounds as organic as a 1960 Impulse! LP, largely because Hebden broadens his instrumental palette, fattens his beats and even gets cinematic. [June 2003, p.109]

Amazing. [Mar 2003, p.92]

One of the most joyous and poignant party albums ever. [Feb 2002, p.74]

Eternity could easily be a musical score as much as it is a step forward for abrasive punk. [Apr 2017, p.80]

Honestly, 34 years deep, this is one of the band's best albums. [Feb 2015, p.92]

The album is a triumph, a huge step forward for a band that should be regarded as one of the best in the genre.

CIS convey aggression and energy through a maddening array of effects pedals and the haunting, grainy tenor of Kristain Hallbert's reverberating voice, combining to form corrosive anthems embellished by space and nuance. [Mar 2010, p.92]

It's hard not to proclaim it as the best album of Enter Shikari's already impressive career. Yes, it's that good. [Feb 2015, p.89]

[They] satisfy largely by serving up more of what made their debut so good. [Dec 2003, p.142]

For an elite cadre of sound warriors, the disc perfectly bridges Slayer's demonic metallic riff majesty with the maniacally convoluted dynamics of French prog-rockers Magma. [Dec 2005, p.216]

For both diehards and neophytes alike, Bad As Me works as Waits' "greatest methods" collection. [Nov 2011, p.98]

Yes, the journey is often challenging, but that's what makes it unforgettable. [Dec 2006, p.190]

The Australian is a poet of common life, her almost-talked, observational tracks turn the mundane profound. [Apr 2015, p.90]

A beautiful, quiet and pensive affair, bristling with subtle electronics and wonderfully layered acoustics. [Nov 2014, p.90]

There hasn't been a song-oriented psychedelic album that's had this sort of life-affirming, full-bodied roar since Mercury Rev's 1993 classic, Boces. [June 2003, p.110]

We're all closer to comprehending, thanks to this absolutely brilliant piece of modern musical art. [Sep 2011, p.116]

Ambitious, grand, emotional and complex, it’s a record that demands the band be seen in a new light.

A bold, uncompromising debut. [Feb 2016, p.100]

Rubies is nothing if not ambitious. [Apr 2006, p.204]

[Jurado] may be our generation's Neil Young. [Apr 2003, p.78]

Vespertine isn't immediately accessible, but after repeat listens, a smoldering heart of emotion and a true pop sensibility reveal themselves. [Oct 2001, p.77]

Every track on Basement is a highlight. [Nov 2004, p.150]

[They] clearly sound alive with the possibility of redefining punk song structure by writing 11-minute flamboyant guitar dirges that have as much in common with My Bloody Valentine as they do with '70s arena rock. [May 2005, p.170]

Only a few slip-ups occur (“Eyelids” wanders for too many minutes), but all in all, it’s a shiny debut from a band we are excited to watch improve.

Ballou has captured the genuine sound of its four members together in a room, less of a monster in your closet and more of a brilliant basement show. [Nov 2012, p.90]

Two masterpieces. [Dec 2004, p.158]

Even though No Devolucion might draw the ire of fans who prefer moshing over meditation, the result is a record that's progressive and, believe it or not, downright beautiful. [May 2011, p.97]

It’s incredible just how good Dreyer is at making you connect with his characters, and how equally good his band are at backing him up.

This is Unwound's Kid A, in that they've turned their back on the rock in favor of something more atmospheric, but even more significantly, they've tossed out all the old recipes and made the future unpredictable. Problem is, they've fixed something that wasn't broken. [Jul 2001, p.85]

Blue Record truly depicts a band at the peak of their powers. [Nov 2009, p.106]

It's the glorious melodies and cavernous, quasi-dub-like production that conspire to make Person Pitch one of the most beguiling, intoxicating releases of 2007 thus far. [May 2007, p.161]

More Scared Of You Than You Are Of Me has its foothold in classic punk and Billy Bragg;s fiery, rambling shout, but is presented in an egalitarian way that any modern punk or emo kid can get behind. [May 2017, p.82]

The Argument is quieter, slinkier and even slower to develop than 1997's tortoise-paced End Hits. [Dec 2001, p.82]

It's the urgency of [Dizzee's] brash Brit patois that dares you not to decipher it. [Jan 2005, p.114]

The songwriting is daring yet tightly focused, catchy yet crushing, but executed with a level of skill that’s an obvious reflection of the band’s greater experience.

Flies In All directions is a pleasing, grand buffet for Weatherbox fans. [Jun 2014, p.108]

While Everything You Ever Loved feels a shade top-heavy, there's little denying how much Make Do And Men have improved their craft over the years. [Jul 2012, p.96]

With Cold House, Hood provide evidence that their time in the sun is long overdue. [Dec 2001, p.84]

Sparhawk and Parker's boy/girl vocals, Low's overall light instrumentation, and their minimalist approach to compostition all blend to produce an exquisite lethargy that's as haunting as Damon & Naomi's music. [#153, p.78]

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]

'The Motorcade Sped On,' a track that chops up funky beats with verteran newscaster Walter Cronkite reporting the death of President John F. Kennedy, is worth the price of admission alone. [July 2008, p.170]

Stop pretending that Morrissey is still relevant, that the Libertines are actually good and that you understand Radiohead. The Futureheads will give you everything you need, if you just let them. [Dec 2004, p.144]

Seamless and sparkling. [Jan 2004, p.98]

What makes Fortress much more than just a chain mail-clad sweep-picking clinic is the band's ability to weave bold melodies into the album's thudering riffage. [Feb 2008, p.116]

It is shattering and completely heartfelt. Iero has made a grand statement with Parachutes that should not be overlooked.

These new hooks are just as sharp as you'd hope for. [Mar 2017, p.80]

Sometimes, the hype is right. [Jul 2007, p.170]

The only twang on the record is the sound of strings breaking as Jack attacks his guitar. [Sep 2001, p.104]

The rare sort of album that convinces you original music still exists. [Jan 2004, p.110]

Their music is tighter, sharper and aiming for the jugular in its first shot. In the simplest terms, the band crafted a record that fills the bigger venues they are sure to be playing now and in the future.