Something's horribly lacking here. Namely, actual songs. [May 2012, p.53]

It's not what you came in for, but quite pleasant all the same. [10 Jun 2012, p.53]

While the progression through the bracing cinematic drama of Sleep Shake, the gorgeous neo-ballad Scared, the heads down industrial charge of Medic and the hauntingly climatic Hypoxia require a few listens to really gel in the listener's mind there is some truly stunning stuff here. [5 Feb 2011, p.51]

This is the first suicide Silence album where each song has an identity of its own, and the first suggestion that true greatness is within their reach. [16 Jul 2011, p.51]

It frequently feels like one of those remix albums where tinkering guests have tried too hard to put their own stamp on proceedings, resulting in curios that are momentarily interesting, but will never replace the established versions in your affections on your playlists. [11 Nov 2017, p.50]

This album lacks that crucial edge to make it essential, but these Bots still know how to kick up a decent noise. [11 Oct 2014, p.53]

While Daemon is not without its evil edge, there's a bounciness to it that makes it an interesting and, oddly, occasionally fun listen. [2 Nov 2019, p.55]

While at some points their aversion to easy melody and obvious structure hoists them by their own petard, there’s more than enough strange stuff here to quicken the pulse and capture the heart.

It might not be the Melvins at their most essential, but their status as rock's quirkiest heroes remains irrefutable. [Apr 2018, p.55]

This is an interesting unexpected extra--pretty, rather than essential. [Sep 2011, p.51]

An album that might not test the limits of artistry, but as with this closing track [Window], leaves you with a fuzzy feeling. [5 Aug 2017, p.51]

Lex Hives may not re-write The Hives' rulebook, it does offer proof that this band sounds heftier and, somehow, even more colorful than before. [2 Jun 2012, p.54]

It will probably prove overly sweet for some tastes but when they hit top form, they're an absolute joy. [29 Oct 2011, p.51]

Admittedly, the single-minded focus does get a bit repetitive, but Optimal Lifestyles makes for a defiantly fizzy soundtrack to growing old disgracefully. [6 Apr 2019, p.71]

Bottom-heavy power dynamic shines on tracks like Dark Horse, a parade of colossal bass drums and Demi’s pseudo-organ effects wizardry, which then reveals its true colours with a flourish of doomy, speaker-blowing riffs.

Alas, as with other City and Colour albums, this one suffers from moments of terminal blandness.

Very occasionally, such as during the first half of the otherwise excellent Crashed Out Wasted, that compulsion to pour honey in our ears can lead to a little too much saccharine. But on the whole, Race The Night is a journey worth taking, deftly hitting all of the touchpoints that make Ash such a special band.

It finds the band indulging their darkest urges, often using nothing more than noise and soundscapes. Like everything the Melvins do, however, it remains compelling, clever, and absolutely unique. [24 Jun 2017, p.53]

Opener The Funeral presents a far less cartoonish performer than he was on 2020's overly-cute second album Weird!. This alone makes the whole thing magnitudes more enjoyable. The energised electro-pop of Memories (a duet with WILLOW) and the brooding Sex Not Violence continue on a similar tack, showing a width of creative goalpost while actually keeping things together.

In Silverstein's hands--a decade and five albums deep now--these very same, well-worn tricks work surprisingly well and it speaks volumes for the Ontario five-piece that this, their Hopeless records debut, fizzles with life and vitality from start to finish. [23 Apr 2011, p.51]

What we're left with is an overlong, quietly ominous strumming set showcasing his twisted genius. [14 Jun 2014, p.55]

Hideaway could perhaps have done with a few more leftfield moments, then, because while it’s breezy and over before you know it, that’s largely because the majority of it is in one sedate speed setting.

Trauma Factory’s straight-up rap moments are more hit-and-miss, with the likes of exile and upside down feeling coherent enough but lacking in bite, demonstrating how nothing,nowhere. sounds best when the musical backdrop is thicker and leans more into the heavier side of Joe’s sound.

It's dreamy stuff, but it's nothing on their 5K-rated, self-titled 2012 debut album. [15 Nov 2014, p.54]

Even in the absence of the drum machines and sonic complexity of old, Esben And The Witch have the capacity to be seriously trippy. [23 Aug 2014, p.53]

If you want hits, there's already a better Best Of available--1997's A-Sides--while if you want a rarities album, this isn't it. [2 Oct 2010, p.51]

The main selling points of this album are a sleek production job and the technical performance of vocalist Conor Mason, who once again proves himself to be in possession of some serious lungs. The problem, however, is that despite the surface sheen, too many of Moral Panic’s songs fail to really go anywhere.

True, some of the reggae songs a re a bit lightweight, but on the punk numbers, Bad Brains' righteous fevour remains undimmed. [24 Nov 2012, p.53]