Parts of the album feel too sloppy, too wayward, and too unfocused to really encourage repeated listens. When Pond tightens their sound, the cutting grooves are hard to ignore.

The album standout, however, is Cash's wonderful version of Hank Cochran's "She's Got You." [Fall 2009, p.75]

The less a-political songs fall far short of REM's extremely high standards. [#8, p.111]

While both tracks suffer from their length, there is still an underlying hint of Shepherd's innovative mastery. It's the failure of this to come to the fore that means the Kuiper EP is not the best demonstration of what it's creator is capable of.

Troubadour sounds like a mixtape from a chameleonic band that does many thing well, but nothing that's identifiable as them. [Aug-Sep 2013, p.94]

The results are tirelessly paced, extremely danceable, and entirely modern-sounding. [Aug/Sep 2012, p.124]

While the group doesn't excel at everything they set their hand to, there's certainly more to recommend here than to warn against. [#13, p.97]

Bleak, caustic meditations for the hopelessly stoned or perilously patient. [#39, p. 74]

There are some strong moments, especially 'Gwen, Now And then,' 'Auctioneer,' and 'Perfect Game,' but those high points are surrounded largely by filler. [Fall 2008, p.79]

While the album is perhaps not as wholly satisfying as 2007's "In The Vines" and could benefit from a tighter structure, City Of Refuge, aided by contributions from Jana Hunter, Scott Tuma, and Sufjan Stevens, among others, sees Castanets craft passages of evocative, dusty beauty. [Fall 2008, p.74]

It may not be as vital as the similarly-schizoid post-rehab records, but it's nice to know Earle can turn on that sort of talent at will. [Mar-Apr 2013, p.106]

Repeated listens will help get you past the initial disappointment of a less experimental Coral album. [#10, p.105]

Honeymoon is both over the top in its barely there-ness (is there anything so bold as a pop star refusing to produce a stream of digestible Top 40 hits?) and simply not bombastic enough.

The band's stylistic exploration is brave and admirable, but Home suffers most from a lack of consistency.

Love and Regret is a tantalizing first step from a group that has all the right influences and hopefully will continue to build on them with fresh, new ideas.

There's surprising diversity here. [Aug/Sep 2012, p.123]

A pleasant curiosity. [#11, p.117]

The record is less a head-on collision of Knost's signature brand of hazy slacker pop and Gordon's famed confrontational leftfield punk than it is a complete reconsideration of the pair's prior dynamics.

If the listener can get used to Norrvide's alien vocals, Lust For Youth can be decadent.

At 37 minutes, it's a short 11 tracks, none of which fully succeed in being instantly memorable.

Standing between The Allman Brothers Band and Creedence Clearwater Revival is a high task, and this time, it gets a little lost in between. [Jul 2011, p.78]

While not a notable departure from his day job Mo Beauty is still a southern-tinged party worth paying a visit. [Fall 2009, p.59]

As a single artistic statement, the flaws are hard to overlook. Yet, it also has intensely personal moments of revelatory beauty. If the listener is willing to look past the weaker elements, the standout tracks on Ricky Music can make it a worthwhile listen.

For a band that has used a kitchen-sink approach in the past, The Devil, You + Me benefits from what is not in the mix. [Summer 2008]

Interpreter extraordinaire Cassandra Wilson embraces a cool dozen standards, although, unfortunately, the overall taste is not quite as cool. [Summer 2008]

Problems is an altogether solid enough and enjoyable listen, it merely fails to push beyond being an impression of the band's former glories.

Hits a nice stride between toe tapping and stargazing but doesn't rock the boat too far in either direction. [#5, p.114]

Unfortunately, the fairly uniform textures and mid-tempo rhythms obscure how Mitchell plays with pop conventions. [#11, p.114]