Kyle Ryan

Unsurprisingly, The Slip lacks polish.

Narrow Stairs finds Death Cab comfortable with all aspects of its musical personality—and on top of them all.

Through Neon Bible, the band is seemingly sending a beacon to other reasonable people forced underground by the world's insanity.

With any band, ambition seems inextricably tied to bloat, but The Devil's better moments make a little pomposity endurable.

The style suits My Chemical Romance well. Its leap into Queen-style theatrics isn't much of a leap to begin with, as the band has always played style-conscious, highly dramatic music. Where other bands have deviated from punk into surprising new directions, The Black Parade sounds like the next logical step for My Chemical Romance.

The Machine isn't about subtle commentary: It's 36 minutes of loose garage rock with massively catchy melodies sugarcoating the biting sarcasm.

It's possible that no other band plays this style as compellingly. Rise Against has a truly great record in it, but that's still being worked out.

TV On The Radio previously seemed content to roam the open horizon; here, it's intent on exploring the far side. The journey is, once again, enthralling.