If their self-titled LP represented a slight dip in the usual quality of this band, Cold of Ages represents a trip both back and forward--back to their earlier days in terms of material and the quality of the compositions, but forward in terms of recording quality, evolutionary potential, and available elements at their disposal.

Cryptoriana – The Seductiveness of Decay does everything its predecessor did right, but better, and with more style, flair, and conviction.

Except for the last two somewhat average songs, this is an accomplished work that defies canons without ever truly dazzling.

Dirty Projectors is back with a reshaped identity, serving up experimental/artistic indie-pop while retaining its penchant for eclecticism and unpredictability.

New Again feels focused and sure; the band sounds confident despite yet another lineup change.

Good for You isn’t a pleasant listen because Amine is so gosh darn happy, it’s because it appears so out of step with a relentlessly negative and dour mood. We could all do with just that much more happiness in our lives.

Braindrops is somehow both more personal and more detached than Liddiard has ever been. It’s personal in that there’s moments of unmitigated passion, manifesting as anger, vulnerability, and virulent snark; the shrapnel from broken relationships and haywire politics ricochets off the band.

Overall, Attention: Deficit should be considered a successful debut, albeit mildly uneven.

It is sad to finally see the unpredictable hero of lyricism finally write an album that is only good. I'll still be listening to this album for weeks, I just hope it stays as consistent as the man's other work has throughout my life.

It’s so perfectly and lovingly written and produced, recalling everything that made you fall in love with the band and their life affirming sound to begin with.

elseq may well be the most ambitious thing Autechre have ever released.

It's not often that a songwriter comes along that not only gives his listeners a chance to view the inner workings of his soul, but is also able to express his own situation so clearly and in a way that resounds so personally to everyone in earshot.

There are moments here worth returning for time and again, but not much to put Eternal Turn of the Wheel in the same level of esteem as its distant predecessors.

Even though this LP may not be a complete game-changer, they are certainly on the right path to come out with one sooner rather than later.

The transitions are what make the thing, equally as important as the actual songs here. Bad Witch finds Trent at a rare peak in terms of song flow and focus, and as a piece is absolutely deserving of the LP distinction, brutally short runtime be damned.

It is every bit as excellent as I could have hoped for. Museum is a haunting affair, delicate and understated at all times yet bold enough to be decidedly impressive.

Shimmering psychedelic post-punk to get lost into.

He displays that it’s just as impressive to make an effective pop song, as it is to create a progressive rock epic. Steven Wilson proves that an artist can venture into uncharted musical waters, even 30 years into their career, for ambitious and vibrant results like these.

They’re all good, all memorable.

A great success on every level; this is their best album since The Earth Is Not a Cold Dead Place.

Volta is a strong album with memorable, remarkable tracks that have great variety, so much that the album loses cohesion.

To put it simply where Treats was the party soundtrack, Reign of Terror is the entire party.

it sounds like Motion City Soundtrack are warming up for an absolute classic. This isn't it--but it'll serve just fine in the meantime.

There’s rhyme to their reason, and the album’s flow is dictated with confidence rather than precarious doubt. The whole thing is refreshing, and Black Rivers’ willingness to experiment is a trait that will definitely resonate with you following the album’s conclusion.

What makes Repave different is that it’s the result of multiple creative minds at work, and that synergy is what makes the record so invigorating.

Carrier, finally, brings that emotional subtext to the front, and the result is a Dodos record that is thrillingly translucent and crushingly intimate, almost uncomfortably so. It’s love and loss, as straightforward as you please.

Winter’s Gate is entirely enjoyable throughout--nothing is even close to being poorly written or executed--it is just that there are almost no moments in the entire 40 minutes that I would call exceptional, where the band went above and beyond to craft something truly memorable.

Disco4 :: Part II might not get everything spot on, but it still stands up to Part I in a way that proves their last record wasn’t a fluke.