A couple tracks may become short-lived flings, but for the most part, the pleasure to be had from Temporary Pleasure will not be short-lived.

This glorious racket... has a beating, hideous heart to it. [Oct 2005, p.76]

The Roots' energy is claustrophobic and thus, jaded. It still has a prominent place on Game Theory, but when it's not subdued, it's downright bitter. [Sep 2006, p.142]

This well-engineered album's ideas have been gestating a little too long. You might just say it's the best album of 1998. [Sep 2001, p.152]

A mesmeric 45 minutes. [Mar 2006, p.122]

An atmospheric and sophisticated album from a promising songwriter. [May 2007, p.93]

The freshness that figured into De La's previous four albums feels a touch staler here. (#78, p.116)

A post-electronica, post-rave production that jettisons genres and cherishes uncut creativity. [Jan/Feb 2007, p.77]

A very dark album, yes, but Raposa's ability to convey much with little usually results in a fragile and gloomy beauty rather than mopey dreck.

Despite the dead weight of his guest MC, Quik delivers a package full of heat. Nothing new or ground breaking, just good old fashioned West Coast party bounce.

Mirror Conspiracy's thoughtful drum programs hardly become drowsy or monotonous... Unfortunately the occasional lyrical overdose also leaves some tracks seeming a little too light. [#77, p.130]

Though sometimes bordering on earnest kitsch... the bulk of material plays out as inventive reconstruction. [Mar 2006, p.114]

Lif's strengths as an MC make his tight narrative focus on the protagonist's plights palpable. [Sep 2002, p.104]

A churning, droning, sickly sweet nouveau-electro trip. [Nov 2002, p.94]

Surprisingly sophisticated for a collection of shouty-pouty ballads from a trio of 20-year-olds. [Dec 2005, p.98]

Unlike the first record, which relied on Temple alone to fill out the layers of the songs, Pigeons utilizes the full band, and improves because of it. The songs are better composed, and more interesting: the experimental bits, which were a bit of a distraction, are more focused and purposeful.

This album showcases the fact that every member stepped up to this creative challenge. A thoroughly enjoyable departure until we hear from Jack and Meg.

Doom still holds some secrets, but his lyricism and feel for the funk sweat out of the this album as much as any of his previous, if not more. He clearly shows that he is here to stay, and if anyone was expecting change, they are looking in the wrong spot.

[A] big, bold, rock-for-the-dance-floor romp. [Jun 2005, p.84]

This time, he's truly on some next shit instrumentally and vocally. [Nov 2004, p.98]

It is quickly clear that Gotan Project have focused and finely tuned their mission during their hiatus. [May 2006, p.86]

The tracks... feel more like loose, languid, quiet-loud sketches and fine textures than actual songs. [Jan/Feb 2005, p.96]

The adventure slightly disappoints. [Apr 2007, p.108]

You can recommend any track on this release to friends without fear. [Apr 2006, p.92]

Mini-symphonies of machine hum and orchestral swoop. [Apr 2005, p.109]

Upon first listen, the crew miss the mark with the unfortunate single, "If You Want It," a trainwreck attempt at a new audience. However, there is nary another song on the album so reprehensible. In fact, there are at least 5 cuts that will have many of you reaching for your disco biscuits and hoping for a Skytel page with the coordinates of an epic warehouse sweatfest.

In many ways, Twoism is more satisfying than their more difficult second album, Geogaddi. [Dec 2002, p.88]

The ’Hunter may not have bagged a 14-point buck this time around, but Microcastle is still good enough to stuff and mount on the wall.

This album is truly an odyssey where if a picture paints only a thousand words, these songs can paint an entire film.

One of his better releases this year. [Oct 2006, p.122]

One almost has to listen closely to take notice of Devotion’s every last little benumbed intricacy but it’s as rewarding as it is tantalizing.

Dizzee's production style is impressive.... His flow is urgent and coherent. [Mar 2004, p.109]

This impressive album sounds like the work of old souls. [Nov 2002, p.100]

Has all the signs of a band of epic, pop potential. [Jan/Feb 2006, p.94]

[The appeal] is in the warm, '70s synths that float melodies into the druggy stratosphere, giving the band's shifty downtempo rhythms and vaguely experimental production a retro-sexy touch. [Nov 2002, p.98]

There’s an intriguing, never pandering, blend of genres on Be Brave–from soul to blues to modern day indie rock-packaged as Texas blues–making the record a more interesting listen each time around.

In spite of some awkward moments, though, Tomorrow Right Now is a dynamic endeavor from a compelling artist. [Mar 2003, p.93]

The vast array of musical styles makes an otherwise mediocre album...a Meanderthal album.

The jury's still out on if such obvious nods to commerciality will fly with their diehard audience. [Sep 2005, p.104]

Numbers are getting by on an awesome sound more than an awesome song. [Oct 2005, p.79]

Expansion Team reveals Dilated Peoples to be a straight-up hip-hop group, for better or worse. [Nov/Dec 2001, p.136]

A bewitching brew of triumphant introspection that, while not unprecedented, is still plenty personal. [Mar 2003, p.95]

Lykke Li manages to combine Feist’s beautiful crooning with Robyn’s playful spunk in her own impressively unique way.

Overall, this is an interesting departure from their work in the past, but hopefully, Darker My Love won't continue to drift further from the sound for which they are known.

Blockhead blesses three tracks with sublime beats, proving what a pair they make. [Mar 2005, p.118]

A track like "Grape Juice City" indeed showcases the duo's tendency to prance upon unique wavelengths and make them their own but, a little extemporaneous head-butting between the sounds would keep Ratatat atop the sonic badlands they created.

Some of the rawest sounds of his career. [Apr 2006, p.90]

Throw in some straight, viscerally melodic vocals and a few cool, smart, electro-pop and digi-funk sing-alongs and you have a classic four-song EP--if not an entire album. [Sep/Oct 2007, p.129]

Wiry, tense, post-No Wave dispatches. [Oct 2004, p.102]

Genetic World finds Telepopmusik vying with Zero 7 and Naomi as the next legendary collective. If only they'd lose tracks 6 and 7. [Jul 2002, p.102]

Vocally, Del may have lost some of his lyrical miracles and "spectacular vernacular" from albums past, but his unquestionably familar cadence hasn't budged a bit. [Jan/Feb 2008, p.104]

A fabulous freeform fiesta of punky reggae and funky dance-pop. [Mar 2002, p.120]

His latest outing, Afterparty Babies, doesn't derail that path, but it struggles to stay on course.

Alternately gritty and bouncy beats by Organized Noize and DJ Sleepy can't quell the sensation of attending a school reunion minus the quarterback. [Jun 2004, p.85]

This album, as seemingly different as each song is, runs pretty smoothly.

A definitely worthwhile rocker, but nothing you'll raise an eyebrow at. [Oct 2005, p.76]

As for the songs themselves, putting aside tragic and Autotuned context, some work and some don’t.

T.I. vs. T.I.P. does continue T.I.'s pattern of finding great production and then sounding really cool on top of it.

Not much separating Brotherhood from "Singles 1993-2003;"...Now for the tasty part. Disc two contains “Electronic Battle Weapon,” volumes one through nine.

Musically, The Hacker provides syncopated New Wave beats with the timeless precision of a musical scholar. [Mar 2002, p.118]

Nothing will blow you away here but a good listen taken in total.

Try the terms "hazy and honey-glazed" or "grandiose and gorgeous," instead [of comparisons to Interpol], with clearer allusions to The Cure and the American Post-Punk Songbook. [Mar 2006, p.113]

Draft's second half will hold more sway over those pining for the minor-key melodiousness of works through Tri Repetae++. [Jun 2003, p.93]

There's just enough rock spirit here to keep Recording A Tape... too weird for Barnes and Noble background music. [Dec 2005, p.104]

At the end of the day, I'm Gay (I'm Happy) proves that he is a much better artist (and role model) than anyone was led to believe.

Terrific tunes. [Apr 2005, p.102]

So while Born This Way for the most part is great, I just don't think she's at her peak musically yet.

Hercules head Andy Butler enters into sizable trances of sonic pleasure, keeping a consistent head nodding and danceable bass line while piling up different elements into an anachronistic salad of old and new melodies all combining and fusing to make something refreshingly current.

Displays gorgeous layering amid catchy pop, mysterious Spanish acoustic guitar, and self-effacing lyrics. [Mar 2006, p.118]

It’s a rare thing to find so many talented collaborators (notably Guilty Simpson, Oh No, & Murs) on top of the skills of such a creative and accomplished selector as Madlib. WLIB AM puts an odd twist on oldschool and dresses to impress.

Much like Sufjan Stevens (but without the history professor schtick) Vanderslice is a one-man orchestra of plucked and bowed strings, living-breathing organs and lullaby vocals that narrate his musical characters with explicit detail. [Sep 2005, p.114]

With every track clocking in at about seven minutes, Convivial may fulfill not only the needs of the insatiable dancefloor, but the wants of those looking for relief of daily life's mundanities.

Unfortunately, it's the production that doesn't meet the previous standard set. [Apr 2007, p.101]

In a sentence, Q-Tip’s long-awaited release looks to get people to thinking, loving, and dancing, as usual.

But for all the labels and feelings the album conjures and provokes, Fight Softly ends up sounding like a bunch of beats and blips gesticulating wildly instead of a cohesive body of melodies and songs.

Think early Blur, without the cynicism. [Mar 2006, p.112]

While the production throughout the album is very strong and cohesive (guitar, drums and some piano taking care of most errands), the vocals might prove otherwise.

Autechre are mulching electronic music, letting their code sweat and rot in the heat. In doing so, they set off a complex ecological process that is interesting to watch, if not always pretty to listen to. [#84, p.105]

Better than his debut. [Jun 2006, p.105]

An undeniably good record. [May 2007, p.95]

Finds [Bachmann] in a maudlin mood. [Apr 2005, p.108]

A high-spirited whoosh of urgent dance pop and groovy psychedelic bop. [Sep 2003, p.102]

The sounds here aren't quite what people are going out of their way to find these days, but these songs stick around for more than just a casual listen.

In a case of not fixing what isn't broken, they return with a veritable cornucopia of crossover-ready collaborators eager to see if lightning can indeed strike twice. [Jul/Aug 2004, p.127]

The record exudes a childlike exuberance in the early going, before descending into a Shadow-esque gloom. [Jul 2003, p.93]

The Streets' novel pairing of dance music and wordplay hits the mark more often than not, and it's a step in a potentially interesting direction. [Nov 2002, p.93]

Fine song craft and distinct vocals still shine. [Mar 2006, p.122]

This record is too flat. [Jun 2006, p.119]

Solid... the album definitely hits its marks. [Apr 2005, p.102]

I Feel Cream is pretty good but at the end of the day, it is a transitional album.

Haughty Melodic should find Doughty a new legion of listeners while sating his faithful followers. [Jul/Aug 2005, p.101]

The perfect balance of sleaze and smarts. [Jan/Feb 2006, p.95]

With production skills that some say are comparable to Madlib and the late J Dilla, we can say, overall, his cutting-edge sound makes Out My Window lovable, fostering the mood of a carefree summer day.

Skimskitta is starkly personal, increasingly hermitic, resulting in only a handful of immediate rewards. [Mar 2003, p.94]

An album that blends genres and forms to spawn a rare breed of funky breakbeat-inspired rock.... Unfortunately, the vocal collaborations with the likes of Jon Spencer, Bobby Gillespie, and Martina Topley-Bird are a bit ill-fitting and disappointing. [#79, p.124]

While it almost goes without staying that every band’s aspiration is to ingeniously pique the interest of their listeners by reinventing old elements and coupling them with new and creative tones, it seems this record’s goal is not necessarily to go without saying, but say it all in the fewest possible breaths.

With The Odd Couple, Gnarls Barkley is unable to come up with anything containing as much pure pop power as their hit song "Crazy," but it's certainly not for lack of trying.

It's her way with a sexy synth beat that gives Ms. Peaches her succulence. [Jul/Aug 2006, p.126]