The singer has yet to discover a sound or sensibility that truly distinguishes her.
With rare exceptions, Fleet Foxes’s lyrics suggest that they’ve been living in the backwoods watching animals.
On Fate, Dr. Dog wears their influences on their Americana rolled-up shirtsleeves no more or less blatantly than they have in the past.
Top Ranking’s hotness can’t—and shouldn’t—be downplayed.
Unlike Björk, Elsiane plays it too safe and the material doesn’t live up to the uniqueness of her voice.
A mad collage of curly-cueing rhymes, direct addresses, sly reproachments, playful chest thumping, and self-beatdowns.
None of the album’s ornamentation takes away from Mike Rosenberg’s lyrics and plaintive vocals, which remain front and center.
Delta Goodrem is already a massive star in her native Australia, and Delta marks the singer’s first bid for success in the U.S.
With Silverlined, Donna the Buffalo don’t stray too far from their trademark sound.
Though Meiko’s lyrics aren’t novel, there are flashes of keen self-analysis scattered throughout her self-titled debut.
Jay Brannan’s Goddamned is a bit of a conundrum.
CSS’s sophomore effort, Donkey, is one of the year’s biggest disappointments.
For teen-pop, your kid could do worse.
Hell, if Black Kids can take on the end of the world, they ought to be able to withstand a little fanboy backlash.
The album finds ways to keep a decidedly vintage style relevant while carefully, deliberately constructing a distinctive sound of its own.
Today I will begin by tearing apart the adjective “non-confrontational.”
Certain Feeling might be a little strange, and sometimes even seemingly meaningless, but it’s also singular, rich, and vast.
The lyrics are all terrific; the beats, not so much.
The album invites us to fall into the lull of Calico Horse’s softly rocking rhythms.
John Mellencamp continues his ongoing evolution into something of a modern populist folk hero on Life Death Love and Freedom.
What works so brilliantly about Around the Bend makes its shortcomings all the more disappointing.