The album is best absorbed gradually, likely over repeated plays with no distractions.

At 10 tracks clocking in at about 35 minutes, it leaves you wanting more .

This melodic yet dynamic punk seems to have been created in the early '80s, a high compliment and one the band is likely to embrace far more than the realization that the disc's title is impossible to fulfill.

Sun Midnight Sun, which deftly combines all these forces--bluegrass, folk, indie rock, pop, country--into something that sounds smooth and comfortable in its identity, where others might just sound jumbled.

The band's newest album is likely to alienate longtime followers and music snobs alike, but will undoubtedly excite newer fans who embraced their massive smash hit "Moves Like Jagger."

It's clearly a labor of love but should also help Walker's tunes (and extensive career) get discovered by Snider's younger, hipper fan base.

This scrap of a record is nothing more than something a hardcore collector adds to the library for completion's sake.

There's an undeniably unsettled, even creepy gothic quality to her noir approach that takes hold early and gradually ratchets up as the eleven tunes gently tangle and unwind.

[A] well meaning but ultimately disappointing release.

Production by the professional but slick and synth loving Jeff Lynne sands off the rough edges where Walsh used to thrive.

Born and Raised a prime example of the John Mayer paradox--it's good enough to satisfy even his most casual fans, but the old-school Mayerisms that remain will only anger his detractors.

The Body Wins stands as something of a transitional work for Jaffe, but it's an impressive album for wherever her musical journey takes her.

While the set of songs on this album may not count among the best of McCartney's career, they definitely provide a pleasurable listen for both casual fans and ardent supporters alike.

The veteran guitarist's 36th album is a predominantly instrumental set that tries too hard to do too much over its hour long length.

This 30 minute set [provides] a crazed, occasionally unhinged yet always riveting experience.

Offering up a populist mix of original compositions, covers of cowboy classics and contemporary songs in equal measure. This frequently ends up frustrating.

Votolato's clear eyed honesty about what seems to be a crumbling long-term relationship as reflected in often nature inspired lyrics, is thought provoking, melancholy, remarkably personal and ultimately revealing of sober truths many have felt in the same situation.

A few more upbeat tunes along the lines of the pop worthy "Summer Child" might have upped the energy, but for established Williams fans, her ninth studio set is another classy entry that gets better with repeated spins.

The album as a whole is not perfect; Ward's decision to follow his experimental ear results in a few excusable setbacks. But at its core, A Wasteland Companion shows yet again why Ward can be placed in the higher echelon of contemporary American songwriters.

While it's not in the vein of his riveting, pulsating classics, it's a tough, often lyrically reflective rumination set to no nonsense, simmering, often swampy blues inflected rockers with an undercurrent of taut funk.

Glasper's formidable jazz chops are the album's constant attribute.

On Delta Spirit the record, the band capitalizes on its hard-fought inertia by presenting their cleanest and most sonically homogenous record to date.

Far from coming off as a dry and didactic exercise in replicating an ancient style of playing, Carolina Chocolate Drops has instead reinvigorated old-time music for 21st-century ears.

In flirting with frivolity en route to the sublime, the Magnetic Fields too often sound frivolous.

Lovett sounds so tired on all of these songs. All those years with Curb weigh heavily on him, which makes Release Me less of a triumphant good-bye and more of an unceremonious shuffle out the door.

Where Roses shines the brightest is via the textures that gild the album's edges.

It's all as heavy and convoluted as it sounds, but the playing and production is top notch and those looking for an adventurous, unpredictable ride will appreciate Cursive's sheer depth of vision.

For the most part, it works. But "Warrior Man," a jumbled idea that could've been a great song, is the sort of cautionary tale that keeps this album from matching Shame, Shame's standards.