The Leeds junglist tells a story in the wrong order, in the right way.
By the time the second track of the xx’s debut reaches its chorus, it’s clear that xx is something special.
It’s the interplay between cheesy and catchy that makes the album a worthy genre time-capsule piece.
Haih Or Amortecedor is a bizarre cocktail of rock n’ roll, Tropicalia, and lounge music.
The album bleeds away anything you could call indie, rock ‘n’ roll, or disco and makes Kyp Malone sound more vulnerable and exposed.
This may just be hip-hop’s most significant release of the last decade.
The album serves as an immediate reminder that Cash is among the most thoughtful, most intuitive vocalists of her generation.
Cory Chisel’s brand of rustic Americana feels like it came fully formed from a package.
It’s defined by two styles that never really gel, a sweeping orchestral side which at times feels at odds with its singer-songwriter side.
Having come into her own on the extraordinary Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Lambert expands on her fascinating, fully realized artistic persona on Revolution.
That no one left during the deluge spoke volumes about Lambert’s command of the audience.
The album is marked by a forced sincerity and awkward posturing that’s uncharacteristic of Furtado’s previous work.
Mariah is in fine voice throughout the album, and there are plenty of inspired moments.
Manafon is far too preoccupied with unadorned stillness to be considered listenable.
Speaking of things that are too hard to hold on to, Celebration’s other major deviation from the Immaculate template is primarily structural.
The best moments come when Wolf holds on to his characteristic black humor while descending into mellifluousness.
Brand New confronts listeners with an impressive variety of sound and fury.
One hopes that Monsters of Folk makes for more than just a one-off side project.
However talented Mika may be, he’s going to burn out fast unless he learns how to rein in some of his more repellant instincts.
Wild Young Hearts is a very good album that falls just short of powerhouse status.
Though he’s backed by a new band, David Gray doesn’t change his trademark formula much on Draw the Line.