It's a little one-dimensional in places, but there's no denying the strength of feeling raging underneath. [3 Nov 2012, p.53]

While lyrically there's nothing explicitly offensive, there are enough risque lines here to raise a few eyebrows, and enough good songs to prick a few ears. [28 Aug 2010, p.54]

While there is nothing to rival the classic Step Down, it's hard to argue with the punch SOIA still pack. [4 Oct 2014, p.54]

Their 11th album, is a heaving smorgasbord of all those [quality meaty metal] sounds. [30 Jan 2016, p.52]

Epic, bonkers album. [3 Feb 2018, p.51]

Through the Wall plays more like a scrappy, occasionally impressive side project. [27 Oct 2018, p.55]

IX isn't quite as boisterous as 2012's outstanding and raucous Lost Songs, but ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead's subtle power still impresses. [8 Nov 2014, p.55]

While For Baltimore proves they can still write a grade A banger when they put their mind to it, too many songs are destined to have "must try harder" stamped on their report card. [13 Oct 2012, p.52]

It's easy-going, it's listenable, but it also sounds a bit, well, tired. [13 Apr 2013, p.59]

For the most part, this is an awkward journey that sounds like no-one else. Try it but don't expect an easy ride. [9 Jan 2016, p.52]

Sure, the songs sound unique to SWS because of their singer's inimitable voice, but several of the tracks are reminiscent of other artists. [23 Sep 2017, p.50]

As a big, glossy rock record that finds Bush aging both gracefully and garishly, The Art Of Survival is a success, even if it’s unlikely to win over any those who’ve remained immune to the band’s charms so far, and isn’t innovative enough to ensnare new listeners.

It won't be to all tastes, but those that care will cherish Simple Maths dearly. [7 May 2011, p.52]

They're suspended in an airy updraft of synths and clean guitar lines that are so '70s prog-rock they should be wearing a Rick Wakeman from Yes-styled cape. [27 Jun 2015, p.52]

Weather Systems is entirely devoid of death growls and contains only the barest hint of volume and aggression. What it does have is lush instrumentation and a sense of drama without the use of distortion. [28 Apr 2012, p.53]

For all its spells when it's thick with vitality and feeling, it rarely breaks free of being anything more than a good record, never an exceptional one. [24 Sep 2016. p.50]

It's the quirky structures and finely drawn lyrical observations that provide the real hooks here. [28 Jan 2012, p.53]

A compelling return from the godfather of goth-punk. [3 Jul 2010, p.51]

Bed & Bugs is an erratic and abrasive effort that'll delight those who prefer their rock to wander without a map. [21 Sep 2013, p.54]

It's weighty and impressive in places, but without Pepper's howl it also sounds curiously incomplete. [3 Mar 2012, p.53]

They're the latest addition to an emerging new breed of post-hardcore acts that are deliberate, delicate, messy and aggressive all at once. [21 Dec 2013, p.70]

Hardcore devotees can rest assured that Kreator have shed little of their original skin. [28 Jan 2017, p.52]

The fact that the real Black Sabbath are currently in the studio makes this fell more like a curtain-raiser than the real event. [10 Nov 2012, p.55]

Silliness and fun are very much the order of the day here so, if you want some depth to your music you'll be found wanting. [23 Oct 2010, p.51]

For all the whiskey-soaked swagger on offer here, there's little to distinguish these tracks from one another. [16 Mar 2013, p.53]

It's far from bad. Sadly, though, Everblack's also far from The Black Dahlia Murder at their best. [8 Jun 2013, p.54]

Accomplished but a little safe, perhaps, Palms is nevertheless an intriguing project worthy of a sequel. [22 Jun 2013, p.52]

Beyond the admittedly impressive riffing, the rest of what's on offer is perfunctory. [14 Dec 2013, p.60]

While they haven't exactly stretched the boundaries of three chords, these Wyoming punks have crafted another 14 tracks of fearless fun here. [28 Mar 2015, p.54]

There's no pushing at the boundaries, but this nevertheless shows Silverstein can still turn some of the things they touch to gold. [16 May 2015, p.54]

All Downhill From Here should have been track two, not seven because [Figure Me Out] is unbeatable. ... Skip this one [Missin' You] if you're a fan of One Direction. Guys, guitars... use them. [2 Apr 2016, p.51]

Yes it gets samey, but in Hatebreed's hands predictability doesn't tend to mean boring. [30 Apr 2016, p.68]

It does meander in the middle, but mostly this is an admirable step in Katatonia's ongoing quest to keep their identity fresh. [18 Jun 2016, p.52]

It's radiant, bold and frequently brilliant. [4 Nov 2017, p.53]

Erase Me is not a perfect record, but it is a solid statement from a band who believe they still gave unfinished business to attend to. [7 Apr 2018, p.53]

The results will mostly appeal to completists. [13 Jul 2019, p.73]

As good as Heavy Fire? Nope, but it's another superb shot of classic-spirited heavy rock from masters of their craft. [7 Sep 2019, p.55]

A composed and well-thought-out record, Life In Your Glass World doesn’t exactly shatter expectations, but what it does showcase is a talented band operating with a fully-fledged confidence and faith in their craft, and that’s more than fine by us.

BUMMER is an album where cleopatrick excel more than they struggle. Their sound could do with a little streamlining, but for a debut LP, this is a bold and at times very enjoyable effort.

There are no crashing power chords, OTT theatrics or questionable haircuts to worry about on All The Truth That I Can Tell. Just an open-hearted, increasingly middle-aged man, his acoustic guitar, and the same brand of chest-swelling songwriting many of us have known since we were young.

It’s a fun, if not unusual listen, that ploughs deeper into the band’s flirtations with synth-pop and electronic experimentation. It’s lacking in the enormity expected of a celebration of 25 years of existence and this is not necessarily a bad thing, however, as it’s a further example of Ulver’s ability to push the envelope and keep their music fresh and exciting.

[Darkthrone] take a detour from the brawling, blackened punk of their last couple of albums and head into thrashier territory. It still sounds like Darkthorne, of course. [23 Feb 2013, p.52]

Boris often sound like they're fashioning a facsimile of a style rather than engaging with it fully. [14 Jun 2014, p.53]

Just Like You is a good album, in that it contains many more good songs than bad ones. [21 Feb 2015, p.52]

The result is an album that quietly impresses rather than ramming you abruptly in the sternum. [18 Oct 2014, p.53]

It's not a "big" listen, and there are no killer tunes, but seeking such obvious moments would be missing the point. [16 Jul 2016, p.52]

It's an often thrilling listen. [17 Jan 2015, p.52]

It's an interesting trip, if one that occasionally sees ATW stray too far into self-indulgence. [27 Feb 2016, p.52]

It would be remiss not to point out that Iron Reagan are retreading familiar ground, but it would be churlish not to recognise that they do so with ferocious relish. [4 Feb 2017, p.52]

In the end the feeling is that Scorpion Child are playing slightly-above-par Saturday night pub rock, and that's all. [20 Jul 2013, p.53]

As it is, the highlights just about mitigate the lack of surprises, making it a Red Fang album with a bite that doesn’t grip quite as much or as hard as we’ve been used to.

It's hard to shake the feeling that this is music more learned than lived. [12 Nov 2016, p.52]

Megadeth are simply a little bit mid-paced, even monochromatic. [5 Nov 2011, p.51]

Wovenwar lack a bit of bite. [26 Jul 2014, p.52]

It's good--at times with shades of greatness--but it's not, by any means, the best they've ever done. [22 Mar 2014, p.52]

While the album does lose focus at times, loosening its initial invigorating grip, the jovial bounce of Let's All Go To Hades is a surefire live hit when you've had a few pints. [11 Feb 2017, p.52]

It's Arabot's noiser moments that are their most gleeful here. [1 Sep 2018, p.55]

It's effective if unspectacular, but it's the lyrics that turn this into something special. [5 Jul 2014, p.54]

All the standard atmospheric touchstones get brushed aside here in favour of a deeper, more meditative experience. [20 Sep 2014, p.53]

The album is one long ambient jam and precisely as exciting as that sounds. [16 Jan 2016, p.53]

Unfortunately, not everything works quite as well [as the opening and final tracks]. [21 May 2011, p.51]

While the first half of Is 4 Lovers takes a jackhammer to old, if still relatively fertile ground (hey, why have one song called NYC Power Elite when you can have two?), the second half dials down the pulverising and amps up the pulsating on less frenzied, more electronic songs such as Love Letter and Glass Homes.

Dark Is The Way sees the Winter Haven five-piece get it right, returning to form with a combination of heartfelt bombast, big choruses and bona fide hooks. [20 Nov 2010, p.52]

John Frusciante’s performance is effective and restrained, and drummer Chad Smith shines when he’s let loose, notably on These Are The Ways. There are, however, way too many tracks that miss their marks, trying to supplant the old energy with wisdom; the magik with maturity.

Separated from the narrative and visuals it's designed around, the music emanates an isolated, dissociated air, but that only adds to its jarring overall effect. [3 Dec 2012, p.52]

You're Welcome stumbles through grating doldrums on garage-rock autopilot, with junkyard fuzz that's more crap-nasty than good-nasty. [3 Jun 2017, p.52]

Wonderfully inessential as anything off their 2012 full-length, Self Entitled. [7 Dec 2013, p.54]

This is a decent redneck honk that could earn them some new friends while they're away. [23 Jan 2016, p.53]

Frequently bursts with the impactful emotion now expected from its creators. [11 Jan 2020, p.57]

It's an album that succeeds on its own terms but if it really does mark the effective end of Opeth as a metal band, that will remain our loss. [Sept 17 2011, p.50]

At no point is it bad, and sometimes it’s rather good, but nothing here is particularly essential.

Fear Factory continue to make the future sound dark and dangerous. [1 Aug 2015, p.52]

A powerful, if not quite life-changing set of songs. [8 Jun 2019, p.55]

On this third album, his gnarly riffs and garage-level production are as unpolished and far-out as ever, but the element of surprise has turned into comforting familiarity. [5 Sep 2015, p.52]

With a demo-like production, it's not as good as the Ramones' similarly sourced Acid Eaters, but hearing him Danzig-up these tunes is still highly entertaining. [5 Dec 2015, p.52]

An album without any clear standout or breakaway tracks. [23 Sep 2017, p.52]

Melvins are occasionally awful, but at least the contrary sods are never dull. [27 Apr 2013, p.53]

There's nothing here that Cradle of Filth haven't done much better elsewhere. [10 Nov 2012, p.55]

If you never liked them, this album probably won't change your mind. But, for anyone already "down with the sickness" Asylum is quite possibly their best record to date. [21 Aug 2010, p.50]

This is a collection of good and sometimes very good songs from a band hacking their way towards their 40th birthday. [15 Jan 2011, p.51]

Throughout, his sandpapered larynx lends a satisfying serrated edge here, only occasionally undermined by incongruous metalcore balladeering and the odd interchangeable riff here and there. [2 Jul 2011, p.52]

Year Of The Hare might need multiple listens, but if you can spare the time, you just might uncover it's secret. [20 Jun 2015, p.52]

As a collection of songs, it's their strongest in some time, and certainly proves that it's not too late to convert to the scriptures of Metal Church. [2 Apr 2016, p.52]

It doesn't eclipse any of its members' day-job bands, but Surveillance is worth scoping out. [26 Nov 2016, p.52]

Admittedly, they do occasionally disappear up their own collective backside, with too much noodling trying your patience, but their ambition and scope show no signs of diminishing. [10 Mar 2018, p.55]

NOFX’s take on Frank’s tracks turn them into turbo-charged So-Cal workouts without really having to do too much to them beyond playing them really fast. Frank’s contributions, meanwhile, see him doing a raucous version of Bob and Perfect Government in his own charming manner, while his take on reggae number Eat The Meek is smart and sharp.

Blood Incantation have definitely achieved what they set out to accomplish and it’s by no means executed poorly, it’s just lacking the instantaneous spark that their previous two releases encompassed.

While the Exeter band stick with the same formula throughout, they do successfully shackle the principle of less is more--if you're tiring of tone of the songs, another will come charging in to replace it before you can hit skip. [30 Apr 2011, p.51]

It's hardly challenging, but Himalayan is nevertheless another goal for for Band of Skulls. [22 Mar 2014, p.54]

Despite the record's unabashed predictability, it's hard not to get caught up in their snub-nosed bluster. [6 Apr 2013, p.54]

On Motorheart The Darkness’s timekeeping is impeccable and with songs about shagging droids their virility proven beyond doubt. As for staying on the right side of that fine line, give the boys credit; two outta three ain’t bad.

Occasionally, Thin Mind lacks the energy to truly achieve lift off, but maturity has given Wolf Parade room to roam. [11 Jan 2020, p.57]

A surprisingly concise, but still collates the quartet's strengths into a mostly satisfying whole. [10 Oct 2015, p.52]

Charming, likeable collection. [29 Jun 2019, p.56]

It's a sideways step for this pair, then, but not so much a complete mutation as trying on a new, synth-tastic set of clothes. [16 Mar 2019, p.55]

It feels harsh to criticise a Panic! At The Disco record for being bold and exploring its brash nature to the fullest. ... But there's no getting around the fact this one feels like it could have done with a defter touch and some sonic restraint. [30 Jun 2018, p.53]

While the band delights in surprising you, it's still slowburning doom that finds Wino at his best. [23 Jul 2011, p.51]

The band's imperial phase might be long behind them, but MM-heads will gladly join this Last patrol. [19 Oct 2013, p.54]