In her debut offering, Carol Bui sticks to a formula of dissonance, passion, dark wit and crafty songwriting to provide heavy, charging rock numbers, delivering track after track with hurricane –like force. “Hell Banknotes” opens up This is How I Recover with a subtle and soft first verse, only to leap and branch out into an intense chorus, a climax aided by a gifted backing band. With a voice like an angel – sounding almost opera-trained - Bui reveals her darker side, fully realizing the impact she can create on stage by shifting the mood on the song to full-fledged dissonant rock. Certainly carving out her niche, Bui blends her melodies with balanced, intelligent narratives. Her songs buzz with energy, yet the pace of the record is relaxed, breathing easily from one song to the next. You can really feel softness in the last track, a highlight, “The Beauty Myth,” only to be surprised, filled with awe over her raspy, hellish vocal screams. When comparing Bui to other songwriters of her genre, one need only look to those of Buckley or bands like Victory at Sea to find them. There is even a hint of Egyptian tonalities in the song “I Don’t Call Him By Name,” a breath of fresh air away from usual college radio spins. - Shawn M. Haney (2006, The Daily Copper)