Weezer - Everything Will Be Alright In The End (Album Review)

When viewed in black and white, the emotional turmoil caused by a few pop-rock songs is quite laughable. But, tell that to a Weezer fan who goes back to ‘Blue’ and ‘Pinkerton’ as touchstones for taste and personal experience, not to mention as examples of songwriting alchemy.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Wednesday, 08 October 2014

Johnny Marr - Playland (Album Review)

It might seem churlish to criticise one of the most influential guitarists of a generation for top-loading an album with six string delights, but it's hard not to come to that conclusion with 'Playland', the second solo record by Johnny Marr.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Tuesday, 07 October 2014

Gerard Way - Hesitant Alien (Album Review)

As one of the modern game’s most successful chameleons, the odds were always pretty good that Gerard Way would be able to make a solo career work. Still, even with that said, ‘Hesitant Alien’ is a fine opening statement.

Written by: Matt Williams | Date: Friday, 03 October 2014

Jamie T - Carry On The Grudge (Album Review)

Time has a tendency to get away from all of us. Five years have dropped through the hourglass since Jamie T released ‘Kings & Queens’ and subsequently sought out the edges of the map as his 20s ticked along, giving ‘Carry On The Grudge’ added weight to grapple with.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Thursday, 02 October 2014

Finch - Back To Oblivion (Album Review)

At this stage, it’s hard to tell what casts the longest shadow; ‘What It Is To Burn’ or the aftermath of Finch’s follow-up effort, ‘Say Hello To Sunshine’.

Written by: Matt Williams | Date: Wednesday, 01 October 2014

Mr. Big - ...The Stories We Could Tell (Album Review)

Apart from Scorpions’ Wind Of Change, rarely has a rock band been as misrepresented by one of their songs as Mr. Big were by 1991’s mega hit, To Be With You. Although that acoustic ballad made them a household name, it was far removed from the hook-laden, quirky hard-rock that characterised much of their work. Over two decades later, those skills remain as sharp as ever on this uplifting eighth studio album.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Wednesday, 01 October 2014

Prince - Art Official Age/Plectrumelectrum (Album Review)

Of all the problems faced by musicians, a seemingly endless supply of creativity is rarely one of them. But, as Prince returns with albums 33 and 34 in one of pop’s greatest careers, the issue is set for a dance in the spotlight.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Tuesday, 30 September 2014

Joe Bonamassa - Different Shades Of Blue (Album Review)

Photo: Christie Goodwin After releasing a studio record a year for what seems like an eternity, Joe Bonamassa took his sweet time sculpting this follow up to 2012’s hugely successful 'Driving Towards The Daylight'. Billed as his first album of all-original material, this is a confident, polished offering that looks set complete his hard earned transformation from blues-rock underdog to bona fide superstar.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Thursday, 25 September 2014

Aphex Twin - Syro (Album Review)

One spin of ‘Syro’ is enough to leave your expectations splattered across a wall. Actually, it’s enough to have you questioning what those expectations were in the first place and, crucially, why you bothered wasting brain space on them. Richard D. James, 13 years removed from ‘Drukqs’, has rolled out an Aphex Twin record that double underlines in red his place in a league of his own.

Written by: Matt Williams | Date: Thursday, 25 September 2014

Kongos - Lunatic (Album Review)

This is a weird one. Kongos' 'Lunatic' is just getting a shove in the UK, having been released in the sibling quartet's native South Africa at the tail end of 2012 before blowing up in the US over the course of the summer. And, blowing up really isn’t an overstatement.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Wednesday, 24 September 2014

Alt-J - This Is All Yours (Album Review)

When a band reaches a certain size, what happens in the dead space between records becomes almost as important to some as the records themselves. Alt-J have, since wrapping things up on their debut, ‘An Awesome Wave’, lost a member - bassist Gwil Sainsbury - and let the clock run just long enough for fear to replace anticipation among some quick-fix fans.

Written by: Matt Williams | Date: Tuesday, 23 September 2014

Joanne Shaw Taylor - The Dirty Truth (Album Review)

Photo: Rob Monk It's safe to assume that, if they haven’t already, record company suits will try to turn blues-rock guitarist Joanne Shaw Taylor into a more commercial property at some stage. But, they’ll have a fight on their hands, as on ‘The Dirty Truth’ she’s delivered a record that’s battered, beautiful and bubbling with passion and conviction.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Monday, 22 September 2014

The Script - No Sound Without Silence (Album Review)

Someone should really have copied the Script in on those Apple/U2 emails. It’s no joke to have to trade pop-rock blows with Bono and pals and, even given the deficiencies present on ‘Songs Of Innocence’, ‘No Sound Without Silence’ quickly fades into the background.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Thursday, 18 September 2014

Slash Feat. Myles Kennedy And The Conspirators - World On Fire (Album Review)

It's fair to say Slash doesn't give a flying fuck about reinventing the rock ‘n' roll wheel. Although he has been known to pimp its rim from time to time, as long as it revolves with time honoured power and fluency, he's a happy cat. And, after masterfully exploring every crevice of the hard rock landscape on this epic new album, he should be ecstatic.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Wednesday, 17 September 2014

Catfish And The Bottlemen - The Balcony (Album Review)

If you’re going to release a record that sounds like it’s been resurrected, Demolition Man-style, from the unloved indie soup of a decade ago, then you better have a bloody good reason for doing so. ‘The Balcony’, Catfish And The Bottlemen’s debut, is a brusque answer to the challenge.

Written by: Matt Williams | Date: Wednesday, 17 September 2014

U2 - Songs Of Innocence (Album Review)

U2 and Apple’s dip into breaking and entering with ‘Songs Of Innocence’ rubbed an awful lot of people up the wrong way. It was a vulgar display of power dressed as altruism, one that shunted the world’s biggest rock band back into the limelight for another run at the stadium market and, eventually, forced the tech giants to create a brand new ‘delete’ function.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Tuesday, 16 September 2014

Counting Crows - Somewhere Under Wonderland (Album Review)

Let's get the time honoured question that greets every new Counting Crows release out of the way, shall we? No, 'Somewhere Under Wonderland' isn't as good as their revered debut album, 'August And Everything After'. It is, though, a superbly written, exquisitely performed slice of infectious Americana that's easily the best thing they've done in years.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Monday, 15 September 2014

Death From Above 1979 - The Physical World (Album Review)

Death From Above 1979 came and went in what seemed like one movement the first time around. ‘You’re A Woman, I’m A Machine’, their 2004 debut, became an almost instant anachronism as dance-punk was put out of its misery, but managed to retain its grubby charm as its peers faded from memory.

Written by: Matt Williams | Date: Friday, 12 September 2014

Banks - Goddess (Album Review)

The arrival of ‘Goddess’, Banks’ debut, will either burst or further inflate a hype bubble that’s threatening to Godzilla certain corners of the internet. At a time when downtempo, sparse R&B is approaching peak popularity - not to mention over-exposure - it’s easy to see why many expect it to do the latter. But, after spending time with it, it’s easier to see how it might do the former.

Written by: Gavin Rees | Date: Thursday, 11 September 2014

Cayetana - Nervous Like Me (Album Review)

You can see some things coming from a mile off and, while it felt a tad unfair to attach such expectations to a debut, Cayetana’s ‘Nervous Like Me’ has looked like it could be a rough-hewn gem for months now.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Thursday, 11 September 2014