" Allmusic's William Ruhlmann considers that the band's follow-up to # 1 Record " lacked something of the pop sweetness ( especially the harmonies )" of the debut but captured " Alex Chilton's urgency ( sometimes desperation ) on songs that made his case as a genuine rock & roll eccentric.

Allmusic's William Ruhlmann gave Worship and Tribute a positive review, noting " Cosmopolitan Bloodloss " an AMG Track Pick.

Allmusic's William Ruhlmann felt " it provides a good sampler of his work, accompanied by a full band rather than recent acoustic sets " and that its style was " melodic folk-rock with electric guitar for bite and often caustic lyrics ".

Allmusic's William Ruhlmann sums up the album as balanced, and notes that the three hit singles were penned by Frey and Henley who would later go on to dominate the band.

Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave it four stars out of five, and said that it saw the band " strip back their music to the basics " and was their " strongest and most vicious record to date.

Coe's debut album, Penitentiary Blues was described as " voodoo blues " and " redneck music " by Allmusic's Thom Jurek.

Allmusic's John Bush felt it was " noisy record basically guitar feedback, synthesizer distortion and rigid drum programming ".

Allmusic's Sean Carruthers observed that Revell " was in a period of transition ... omewhere between the industrial noise of the early years and his later soundtrack work ".

Allmusic's retrospective review was largely negative, particularly criticizing the solo sides of Keith Emerson (" on the level of a good music-student piece, without much original language ") and Greg Lake ("" C ' est la Vie ," the featured single, says little that " Still ... You Turn Me On ," from their previous album, didn't say better and shorter ").

Allmusic's retrospective review was resoundingly positive, marking every aspect of the band's transition from a jazz-influenced vein to a more experimental one as a complete success.

" Allmusic's later retrospective review was only slightly more forgiving, summarizing that the album " is more interesting for what it points toward than what it actually does.

Allmusic's Bruce Eder praised the album, saying that it was better produced than their debut, but he also said that it " doesn't tread enough new ground to precisely rival In the Court of the Crimson King ".

Allmusic's Steven McDonald was mostly positive towards the album, rating it three stars out of five and stating that " while not perfect, the album makes a nice alternative compilation ", noting that it shares the television series ' " blue-light glow of twisted mystery ".

A retrospective review by Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine was still mixed.

Allmusic's retrospective review echoed this sentiment with greater emphasis, declaring " Duke showcased a new Genesis ... but Abacab was where this new incarnation of the band came into its own.

Allmusic's review was resoundingly positive, noting that the album's thematic exploration of Cold War tensions " is dated and hasn't aged very well ... but the music is a pleasure.

Allmusic's retrospective review reported that when it was released, Machine Gun Etiquette was " deservedly hailed as another classic from the band ".

Allmusic's employee Ned Raggett gave the album a two and a half star rating, noting that " Live Undead isn't really necessary except for the hardest of hardcore fans in the end, especially in comparison to Decade of Aggression ," and saying that " Evil Has No Boundaries " was the best performance of the seven songs.

The song was popular with critics and fans ; Allmusic's Amy Hanson called it a " somewhat surprising hit ".

" Allmusic's critic Alex Henderson wrote in his review that " Black Earth was a promising debut for Arch Enemy and is among the Swedish combo's more consistent and memorable efforts.

Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine was not impressed by INXS " playing a competent but unremarkable variation on droning new wave synth pop " but noted that Hutchence " exuded a powerful vocal charisma ".

On 25 April that year Crime and the City Solution issued their second album, Shine, which Allmusic's Ned Raggett felt was " a touch less classically smooth and arranged, more rough around the edges and jagged, especially with Bonney's delivery ... his lyrics come across as distinctly unfriendly to a usual verse / chorus structure, sounding like a spoken-word recitation sung a line at a time ".

Allmusic's review of the original single argued that the song was the band's " crowning achievement ".

Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine estimated that Cantrell was a reluctant solo artist who would prefer his work to be published through Alice in Chains.

As Allmusic's Richard S. Ginell writes: " Hands down, this epochal concert ... was the crowning event of George Harrison's public life, a gesture of great goodwill that captured the moment in history and, not incidentally, produced some rousing music as a permanent legacy.

Allmusic's retrospective review gave the nod to the band's mix of progressive rock and boogie rock as being unique, but contended that it also makes them less interesting than other progressive rock bands.

Allmusic's Alex Henderson gave it three stars out of five, and said that " the band's sound hadn't changed much, and time hadn't made its sledgehammer approach any less appealing.

" Allmusic's Heather Phares wrote " La Foret may be more delicate and less immediate than some of Xiu Xiu's other work ( especially Fabulous Muscles ), but at its best, it may have even more impact because of that.

Allmusic's Steve Huey said that it " brought back some of the pounding speed of Reign in Blood for their third major-label album ", and addressed it to be " their most accessible album, displaying the full range of their abilities all in one place, with sharp, clean production ".

" In its review of True Blue, Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine said that " she is using the music to hook in critics just as she's baiting a mass audience with such masterstrokes as ' Papa Don't Preach '.

Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave it three stars out of five and said that " Sponge's sense of alternative rock goes back as far as Pearl Jam, or maybe only Stone Temple Pilots, judging from the hit single ' Plowed.

Allmusic's Richie Unterberger critiqued what he referred to as the " growing tendency to deploy the smutty, cheap humor that would soon dominate much of Zappa's work ", but said that " Those who like his late -' 60s / early -' 70s work [...] will probably like this fine ".

Allmusic's Heather Phares praised Cibo Matto as " Fresh and funky ", and said of the album, " Viva!

Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave it four and a half stars out of five, and said that it " delivers a set of similar rockers and a handful of power ballads, including a revamped version of Harry Chapin's ' Cats in the Cradle '" and described the music as a " mixture of fizzy, fuzzy riffs, sing-song melodies, and calculated obnoxiousness isn't that offensive.

Allmusic's Ed Nimmervoll said that the band distanced themselves from the boy band generation, comparing them to Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young.

Allmusic's Andy Kellman said it was " a daring way to introduce himself to the masses as an MC " and it " couldn't have forged his dual status as underdog and champion any better.

The album garnered the admiration of critics, with Allmusic's Rob Theakston referring to the album as an " outstanding record " and Steve Jones of USA Today remarking that on the album EWF are as " vibrant as ever ".

" Allmusic's Mark Deming commented that " Newman's humor started getting more acidic with 12 Songs, but here even his most mordant character studies boast a recognizable humanity, which often make his subjects both pitiable and all the more loathsome.

" Complete with anthemic choruses, spoken word story lines, and plenty of bombastic power metal punctuating every dramatic turn ", says Allmusic's Vincent Jeffries, " Nightfall in Middle-Earth is perhaps Blind Guardian's most triumphant ".

Allmusic's top-marks review states " The Chemical Brothers ' sound is big on bombast, replete with screeching guitar samples and lots of sirens and screaming divas.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine and Heather Phares wrote in Allmusic's biography of Pavement that, with Demolition Plot J-7, Pavement " had begun to forge influences into its own signature sound.

Allmusic's John Bush praised the album, writing " Despite all attempts to sabotage his songwriting and production with innumerable experimental tidbits, songs within a song, and ( seemingly ) tossed-off arrangements, Damon Gough has to face the fact that he wrote and produced over a dozen excellent songs of baroque folk-pop for his album debut, and the many gems can't help but shine through all the self-indulgence.

Allmusic's Zac Johnson called the album " spectacular ", " brimming over with Wainwright's trademark popera and young romantic wishes ".

Allmusic's Adam Greenberg described Slack Key Dreams of the Ponomoe as an ambient album with an " easy listening " sound accented with slack key motives.

Allmusic's Greg Maurer's found " a fascination with the dark, ( self -) destructive side of religion is more than evident in his later work ...

Allmusic's Bret Love wrote that " The group's high testosterone and volume levels, and virtual lack of funkiness, ensure a somewhat limited appeal, but for angry young men with too much pent-up energy, the powerful aggression of < nowiki > Snappin ' Necks </ nowiki > must be close to heaven.

Allmusic's retrospective review asserted the opposite: that the album indulged in long and meandering instrumentation more than any other work by Traffic, with even the vocals doing no more than " improvising his melodies over the music, paying little heed to the meaning of the words ".

Allmusic's review of the album Appetite of Kings noted the influence of the Sex Pistols, along with " aggressive pogo-punk ".

Allmusic's Liana Jonas described the song " a lively and heartfelt song with electric-guitar power chords, spirited vocal delivery, and catchy chorus .".