Form & Control exhibits a duality that splits the difference in the disparity of the Clap's soulful psych-pop/dance club fusion.

Jackson's love for Ellington but unwillingness to play it safe puts The Duke much closer in spirit to its inspiration than rote copies of originals would ever have done.

The production has gotten bigger, slicker and more surgically clean, but the tunes haven’t.

Excellent.

Andre Williams, ladies and gentlemen: one of the last living links to the heyday of dirty R&B, super-soul and first generation booty funk. And certainly one of the few left who still brings it like he means it, every time.

Another solid step in their ongoing evolution, These United States constitutes a genuine declaration of independence.

No One Knows is a subtle album, one that requires time and patience to allow its hooks to sink in.

If you dig big choruses, the sound of a heart breaking and just the right amount of sweat on your brow, then Like a Fire That Consumes All Before It is for you.

This album is a wellspring of the bandmates' combined creativity and an ode to free-spirited artistic expression. Bravo.

Todd tended to distance all but the most devoted, thanks to an album that was, to say the least, rather difficult to digest. So while Global draws from the same synthesized setup, fortunately there’s plenty here to keep everyone enthralled.

Some tracks prize vibe over structure to their detriment.

There is little if anything redeeming about this CD.

What sets the Fray apart is that they use their music to tell other people's stories in literate, compelling ways.

While the band may seem more aware of emphatic expression overall, many of the melodies maintain the anthemic perspective that ‘s always been so inherent and inspired.

The raison d’etre here is warhammer shred, with little mercy and less restraint.

As Yes is now in its sixth decade, the prog rock band shows on Fly From Here that it can still make music that is fresh and lively.

Those that deem this effort too weird or erratic are best advised to consider the deluxe edition with its live bonus disc recorded with the Metropole Orchestra at the Paradiso in Amsterdam.

As long as those instrumental additives remain intact, Poco will always excel in more than name alone, but with fewer voices in the mix, it also remains a challenge to reach that high bar established so early on.

The Midsummer Station isn't a terrible album; it just sounds as if big studio influence overshadows much of the reliable metaphors and creativity that made songs like "Fireflies" a hit.

Unfortunately, there’s little of anything redeeming about the music on this album.

While the melodies are occasionally amorphous, the poetry and passion are clearly conveyed.

Friedberger sits at his keyboard noodling around on little motifs with slight variation here and there, which do evoke cinematic cues. But without the images on the silver screen, it becomes the music of buttons being pushed which gets old quickly.

The fuzz of "Fighting the Smoke" and blend of twang and sincerity on "Red Rubber Army" prove that he's not going to run out of great ideas any time soon.

It turns out that "Brandenburg Gate" is one of the only songs with an actual melody. The rest of Lulu is full of recycled, repetitive riffs; endless drones; more sex and violence than a slasher movie.

Live in Japan is more valuable as a historical artifact than as a concert recording one is likely to return to again and again.