190. Elliott Smith - Figure 8 (2000)

The placement of this album on this list is as good an illustration as any of the shortcomings of the "auteur theory". Basically, if Elliott Smith weren't Elliott Smith, this album would be nowhere near a top 200 of the decade. It brings nothing new to the table, and in fact shows Smith regressing toward the almost atonal stuff he did at the beginning of his career. See, the thing about Smith was that he was basically an indie Paul McCartney in disguise--his stuff is at its strongest when it's at its biggest. The best tracks on Either/Or are the most produced, and it was on XO that he finally realized his true strengths and slathered everything in pianos, strings and harpsichords. This album, however, is a kind of half-assed combination of his simpler and his more complex work, with weaker melodies than either. "Junk Bond Trader" has a nice classic-rock feel, and "Everything Means Nothing To Me" makes a real emotional connection, but the rest of this is largely absent interest or memorability. Pick up New Moon instead, and his 90s stuff of course.

MY RATING: 3.8

 Elliott Smith - "Junk Bond Trader"