I really don’t get how underrated Roman Candle is. Maybe I just don’t care about production values as much but there’s not a single track I skip, it also paints one of the clearest pictures/atmosphere through all the songs and how they tie together which I think the raw lo-fi helps with.
Big agree. Roman Candle is easily one of his best albums. Roman Candle, Last Call, Condor Ave?! Cmon man, those songs are fucking amazing, and those are just the named songs.
Someone gets it. It's one of his best albums in my opinion, next to Either/Or for pure lyricism and masterful chord painting. It's better than his Self Titled imo
i'd personally consider roman candle b tier title track has a bad hook and last call is a mess with bad production and vocals, but everything else is really damn solid honestly especially love condor ave, the complete shock and despair depicted in the song is unmatched by anything else elliott put out later in his career imo
Dumb takes honestly Either/or dOeS nOt hAuNt mE Tf it's not supposed to its about the aesthetic and imagery(instrumentally and songwriting wise) Such a bad take i hate him so much
It was awesome to see that, I was beginning to think I was the only Elliott Smith fan who exaggerated his love for Figure 8. Meanwhile I find XO super overrated, im kinda the opposite of most fellow Elliott Smith fans 🙃
From A Basement On The Hill is such a phenomenal album! The haunting loneliness you can hear from Elliot’s trembling voice while he sings over those intricate guitar parts is just something you can’t skip. My personal favorites are “Coast To Coast,” “A Distorted Reality,” “Memory Lane,” ”Kings Crossing” and “Shooting Star” It’s gotta be S tier!
I guess the production choices are a love and hate thing. I personally love the rough and unique production choices (I.e double tracked drums and distortion). Would love to see a deluxe of it like they did for either or
The production kinda ruins that one for me sadly. Memory Lane on that album is one of my all time favorite songs by Elliott though and I never really hear that one talked about
Elliot Smith went to my high school, theres a really cool culture surrounding him there, I dont think I would have discovered his music as early as I did had I not gone to Lincoln.
Hey that's crazy I just graduated from Lincoln last year, I was a huge fan of him before transferring there and when I saw that plaque of him in the hall I was blown away lol
Roman Candle feels like a high B or low A to me. It's a little rough around the edges, but most songs did a great job setting up ideas and themes to be expanded on down the road. Condor Ave, No Name 3, and Last Call are all standouts.
From A Basement on a Hill is potentially my favorite of his. I actually enjoy the production. I think it sounds less compressed and a bit more natural than figure 8, and I think it's probably his most heart wrenching. Figure 8 is his most grand and probably best songwriting though.
From a basement was the first Elliott album I ever heard. Found it at a CD shop in Vancouver and picked it out just cause I thought the artwork was cool. Listened to it on the drive back to the Okanagan, hated it and didn't listen again for a few weeks. I usually liked singers with big voices at that point. Then, despite myself, it grew and grew on me till Elliott became one of my favourite artists and inspired a lot of my own work. 'Twilight' is gorgeous, 'Fond Farewell', 'Pretty (Ugly Before)'. I could go on. First time judging something by its cover ended up being really accurate. I love seeing people talk about him. I'm going to listen to Figure Eight now.
I was sleeping on from a basement for years and honestly it does have some of his best work IMO. Twilight is one of the most haunting songs I’ve ever heard while still being gut wrenchingly beautiful. I can’t get it out of my head recently
To me none of these albums is less that a B, literally a perfect discography (I disagree with either/or in B, but I LOVED IT WHEN YOU PUT FIGURE 8 IN THE S!!!!)
I only learned of his music about 10 years ago but in the early 2000's he was a regular in my neighborhood at a few Starbucks among few other places and specifically a record shop. He was in a lot of my friends top 8 on myspace and I just thought he was a local with ties to my friend circles. I knew a lot of people in music and never put it together he was a musician. I just knew him as the guy who hated me immensely. I was a skater nu metal looking local hoodlum punk type and I think my existence just offended him. I will never forget the day I had to interrupt him talking to the record shop guys talking about the music that was playing ( I didn't know he was previewing some of his stuff to them at the time I think it was his eventual 2004 album ) to ask for the Anal Cunt CD's I had them put on special order for me and thank them for recommending Agoraphobic Nosebleed. The look of disgust on his face was hilarious.
@@danielandrewgrant Well I’m sure if he were still around and the guys from the shop that I know are still around making music would have more of a sense humor about it than you.
I really disagree with the from a basement… placement. I think it’s his most unique album and it’s my personal favorite lyrically. I think the ideas on there work. There are some low points on it but i love the majority of it so much i’d put it A tier.
@@danielandrewgrant for sure. I believe “stickman”, “see you in heaven” and “abused” were songs left off it and those would’ve definitely added to it. Some of my favorite songs by him.
personally, roman candle and elliott’s self titled are my favorites because of the subtle but real raw indie feel they emit that i haven’t heard in many other records. great stuff :)
Yes, there's something really appealing in the rough and gritty quality of the earlier albums that makes them special to me. Not that the later ones were bad by any means
Oh my god what is happening, I just got obsessed with Elliott Smith starting a month ago, listened to his entire discography and bought every album on vinyl, and suddenly all this great Elliott content from you!!
i respect your feelings, but tbh i think 'From a Basement on the Hill' is the absolute greatest collection of Elliott's tracks that exists. a 10/10 masterpiece.
Usually people gravitate either towards his early albums or later ones, so it's nice to see the two very different sounds of self titled and Figure 8 up there. I think Figure 8 often gets overlooked next to the hits on Either/Or and XO, but it really does have some of Elliott's best songwriting. He was very proud of Everything Means Nothing to Me, and for very good reason.
From a Basement on the Hill has got to be the most underrated album of all time. No album has garnered more of my appreciation over time than that one. From me not wanting it, to me not preferring it, to me casually liking it, all the way to my mind being blown away, obliterated. It left me just completely and utterly impressed after a few months, connected to music at a higher level than I previously knew possible. So it's a shame that the album won't get the props I think it deserves. But I also can understand why because I remember how long it took me to be with it until it connected to me in that way which I would never have expected. So if you read this, give that album a chance over time. Let it play on shuffle for a few car rides. Sometimes during the day, some at night. Stick with it. There's something extraordinary behind that effort.
Likewise. Its become my favourite album of his. I think early post humous reviews werent sure what to make of it and they kept reminding us that it was finished without him and thats why so many fans wrote it off as not his best effort
I love this comment. This is precisely how I got into him. I discovered his post humous material first. A friend of mine that I respected musically swore they Elliott was great so I just kept trying and eventually fell in love
I'm suprised to say I couldn't disagree more, because I agree with so many of your reviews (really love how you broke down Daughters' You Won't Get What You Want, for example). ANYWAY Not only is FABOTH a top all time album, but Strung Out Again is a highlight. The dynamic and tonal range of the music, the emotional range of the lyrics, help tell a story of confusion, pain, and self-betrayal with brutal candor. Here's where the pop sugar coating he had a knack for gets perfected...and sand blasted off. If it didn't give you the shivers from the very first listen, it's probably a good thing you can't feel it or otherwise relate....
I totally Agree with you, but, this album was with me during HS while I was a heroin Addict, was a abused. So Elliott at the time HIT EVERYTHING. So I believe were alittle Bias.
FABOTH is my favorite Elliott Smith record of all time - it's so. just. I'm speechless. Deserves S tier. Also, I love Roman Candle so much - it feels unfinished because it was 😭lmao - not sure what the exact sourcing is behind this, but Genius contributors say he literally recorded the whole thing on a 4-track by himself, so it makes sense that it's more bare-bones. Bc of that, I think it deserves to be sooo much higher -- the production quality isn't the best because he was using what he had, yk? The songs are so good regardless.
Can’t believe you haven’t done a Fugazi or Death tier list. They both have size-able discographies with records that sound relatively different than each other
Fugazi would be something like: S tier: 13 songs - Repeater - Red Medicine - The Argument A: In on the kill taker - End hits B: Steady diet of nothing There you have it.
@@IveGotToast i really feel like he'd give TSOP a C rating or below... doesnt seem to like much prog metal and Death went pretty much full prog at that point
I’m very pleasantly surprised to see Figure 8 in S tier. Always been one of my favorites of his and for some reason it seems to be somewhat underrated in his discography.
Yeah it was the first album of his I listened to, Roman Candle, Condor Avenue and then all the noname songs are all some of my favourite acoustic tracks ever. Drive all over town is okay, kinda boring I thought and I feel similarly about Last Call too. The madding 2020 song is cool though
I cant say enough about the healing powers of most of his work. I wouldn't be so inclined to say its "depression music" but more like "throwing water on the flames of the burning building you're stuck in when your in a mental rut music". Its "lullabies for the beaten down" I just wish that everyone who needs him, gets him.
BIG COMMENT TIME: This is easily the most excited I've ever been to watch a video of yours. Holy shit I can't wait. I'm going to give little write-ups on your opinions as I watch! Roman Candle: C Tier is fair, considering what you said in the intro about C tier still being an amazing project in the grand scheme of things. Some of his all time best songs are on here, like the title track and Condor Avenue, and it also includes his most underrated track for me: No Name #3. Overall this album has many of the haunting, spidery/cobwebby qualities as the self-titled, but he hasn't quite fleshed it all out yet. Elliott Smith (Self-Titled): Absolutely Agree. As someone who got into Elliott Smith through XO and his other more-produced works, I didn't expect this one to ever blow me away, going into it knowing that it was more stripped back and barren. But sure enough, it quietly and steadily grew on me to become maybe my all time favorite of his albums (although it's ultimately impossible to decide and my favorite changes every month, regardless, this is my most listened to album of his). The absolute genius of those sparse, steady, often mere step-apart chords of Needle In The Hay, beginning with the right channel, and filling the full stereo field by the third chord, never fails to immediately suck me into the haunted soundscape this album creates (and creates, keep in mind, with remarkably little: guitar and voice). Arrangement-wise, this album is perfect. Each guitar part is so full and rich on its own, (a given for Elliott Smith), but the few moments where he extends the song beyond just guitar and vocals are nothing short of brilliant: The ghostly harmonica on Alphabet Town, the otherworldly, ethereal electric guitars on Satellite (at the 1:30 mark), and the breathing keys on Coming Up Roses all fill my soul with so much rich, indescribable emotion that it's overwhelming. This album is flawless. S Tier, easily. Either/Or: Strangely enough, this is another 100% agree moment. Great job, melon! Our opinions have significant overlap :) This is the album I would want to feel like an S tier album, as it is for so many others, but I feel like it just has some brief lulls in the middle and nearing the end. I can understand how, for other people, they might not be lulls at all, and if the offending songs I had in mind weren't right next to each other (like Cupid's Trick being next to 2:45, both of which I like, but not love like the songs around them) then perhaps I would put this album in A Tier. With that criticism out of the way, I must say that the three track run from Rose Parade, Punch and Judy, to Angeles, is one of my favorite album sections of any album of his. The way the tape hiss fades into Rose Parade soothes my soul, those mellow Punch and Judy verses swing me into the same warmth as a parent's low vocal rumblings as you lay against their chest, half asleep and cozy: and the Angeles Intro? The best guitar work of his lifetime. Bold statement, I know, but the soft dynamic range and and incomprehensible intricacy and intimacy of that finger-picking intro is something literally nobody in the history of music has ever achieved, nor ever will again (at least emotionally. Nothing will ever make me feel the way that makes me feel). And Say Yes? SAY FUCKING YES? His second best song (in my opinion, of course). It's not as cryptic and dream-like as much of his other songwriting is, which makes it, in my opinion, his most accessible love song. Not to mention that that it has the greatest opening line of any song of all time. XO: This is the fist one where I'm going to have to disagree with you, chief. XO is S tier for me. I wouldn't call it flawless, as I would for the self-titled, but considering the greater scope, and how it manages to fully realize and accomplish everything within that scope, I'd have to put it up there with the best. I wouldn't have put it in S when I first got into it (even when it was my favorite of his works), but the songs which once held it back for me (like Waltz #1 and A Question Mark) have grown on me so significantly (over the course of maybe 100 listens) that they now elevate it to the top. Bled White is my favorite Elliott Smith song. It bursts with some of the best, catchiest, most uplifting energy of any of his songs. The first 7 tracks of this album are fucking unbelievable. Like I said, I love Waltz #1 now, but it changes the direction of the album from what comes before it. That first run of seven songs (seven fucking songs in a row!!!) is my favorite passage of music, surpassing the Abbey Road medley. The mesmerizing descending guitar on Sweet Adeline, the "I've got static in my head" moment of Tomorrow, Tomorrow, the heart-lifting "On and on and on" bridge of Waltz #2 XO (his greatest bridge), the weirdly out-of-tune shrill but exciting tones at the end of Baby Britain, the crushing piano solo on Pitseleh, the intro guitar and drums into the drum loop of Independence Day, and ALL of Bled White make up the most exhilarating listening experience I've ever had the unbelievable fortune to experience. As a staunch Atheist, it makes me want to believe in a God, so I can thank them for putting me on Earth at a time where I can experience this album. 10/10. Figure 8: Another big fat agree Mister Tony. This one might actually be an in-between A-tier and S-tier for me, and not as completely unfuckwithable as you claim it to be, but it's hard to find fault in this album (besides maybe The Roost and The Gondola Man, which feel a little tacked on and don't add much for me). Elliott Smith is the only person who could make a song called "Somebody That I Used To Know" and it be the best song with that title. (I'm aware that the Gotye song came out afterwards lol. I think that son slaps too, but the lyrics and finger-picking of Elliott Smith's are unbeatable). Wish you had mentioned the bridge of "In The Lost and Found." A classic example of Elliott playing like five major chords in a row that somehow create the saddest, most soul-stirring music you've ever heard, which just primes your heart and spirit for destruction, and then he plays one minor chord, and your heart just completely shatters. This is his most listenable album, and undoubtedly a masterpiece. From A Basement on the Hill: Hey there big guy. You know you're my little buddy, my strong man, right? My little sweet Anthony. Me your mom just wanted to let you know that we love you, even if your opinion of this album is fucking garbage. I don't mean to be belligerent, because I sincerely want you to revisit this album with open ears after I talk a little about it. This album could be his best. Along with Mac Miller's Circles, this is the greatest album that has ever been completed after an artist's death that has ever existed. It's fucking unbelievable how good this album is, considering Elliott didn't get final say on it. It's even missing some of its best tracks, like Abused (you have to check that out, it's on RUclips). Your criticism on the tone of this album being "standard, bland indie rock" seems a little strange to me: I understand that this album is heavier and more distorted, like many indie rock albums, but it's also incredibly warped in a way that draws no other comparison to mind. This album has his best synesthetic audio-to-visual production. When I listen to this album, it's like I'm taken into these Salvador Dali cathedrals, with twisting walls and cold, blue stained glass reflecting into my inner mind and body, where my body floats up to the ceiling of the cathedral as I become completely enveloped in the distorted warmth of Smith's sound: and then, in the next moment, I'm taken to a small, quiet stream, sitting on the green bank, totally lost in a dream: This is what it feels like to listen to Coast to Coast followed by Let's Get Lost. Let yourself get lost in the soundscape that these songs create. Let the brilliance of the rhythmic melody of A Fond Farewell sweep you away into a dark, dark place, and feel as submissive to void and oblivion as Elliott Smith feels in King's Crossing, which is, you may have guessed his. all. time. best. song. The most moving, sob-inducing piece of art I've ever experienced. The bitterness and resignation of a line like "But I don't care if I fuck up / I'm going on a date with a rich wife lady / Ain't life great? / Give me one good reason not to do it" has no parallel, and maybe thank God for that. This album has no bad tracks. This album has no mid tracks. This album has no good tracks. This album has only great tracks, incredible tracks, and some of the greatest songs of all time. I wish we could know what it would have been as a double album, as he intended: but if the half-finished product is this good, what he would have created, had he not tragically passed away, may have been the greatest album of all time. New Moon: B tier is a good choice for me as well. There's not as much to say about this one, other than the usual: some of his best tracks are on here (Angel in the Snow, Going Nowhere, New Disaster, and See You Later, which is better than the Heatmiser version, and absolutely insane that he sang and played it all in one take on live radio), but I understand this one is probably more for the hardcore fans. Still, the fact that a POSTHUMOUS COMPILATION album is this good speaks to the sheer quality of Elliott Smith's work. Either of those words, posthumous or compilation, is enough to give any music lover the bad taste of a corporate cash grab in their mouth, but here, it actually strengthens his legacy and compiles some of his best work together. And those are all of my opinions on your opinions, Antknee! Thank you for reading all this, whoever is out there. I'll leave you with my favorite Elliott Smith Lyric, and I hope you all have a wonderful New Year, under a spiritual Old Sun, and haunted New Moon. Day breaks But every morning When he wakes He thinks of you
I was introduced with Either/Or, so it's one of my favourite albums ever, though personally my top is XO - the run of songs that goes Waltz #2/Baby Britain/Pitseleh/Independence Day is one of my favourite runs of songs on any album ever. Always glad to see love for New Moon though - such an underrated album! Either way, no Elliott album is bad, and while we differ on favourites I won't argue with your top picks. All of them have their strengths
Biggest ES fan here, I know all his songs including unreleased stuff inside and out... and Independence Day is his best in my opinion. My favourite changes all the time of course, but that song is actually perfect
Couldn't agree any more. I'm blind to/avoidant of certain music that others fawn over, as was the case when friends & the press elevated his earlier work to rarified heights - my elitist bias at work. Thus, I only jumped into him w XO after the hubbub thinned out. That album was a soundtrack to my life in NYC for a long time and still holds up: every track is amazing, an evocative, seamless album.
I think Melon misunderstood FABOAH - Elliott was very much into dirtying up his sound. And I like the direction he was going in. Also, IIRC, Shooting Star was intended to be the album opener and I think it helps to listen to the record that way. I would also push new moon and either/or up a tier. I was super bummed still when I bought new moon - took me about a year to really sit and listen to it, but maaaaaaaan was it ever worth it. Some of his best moments.
After being casually into Elliot Smith’s music over the years, I fell deeply in love with his work this past year. His music has reinvigorated my own singer-songwriter aspirations. While Either/Or and XO have been my favorites, I also do love the self-titled release. Some songs from Figure 8 for sure. And there’s still more of his catalog I’ve yet to acquaint myself with. So appreciate that you’ve come out with these videos on Elliot’s work recently, Anthony Fantano 🖤🤘🏼 It’s a pleasure to hear you discuss them.
Roman Candle has gotta be my favorite for sure. It's so bare bones, it's 100% pure Elliott and showcases his talent as a songwriter without needing to be polished. And Kiwi Maddog 2020 is one of the coolest instrumentals ever.
happy to see you gave figure 8 an S! i love every single elliott smith album and figure 8 was the first cd i bought with my own money when i was like 15 or 16 (the car ride home with my parents listening to it was a little awkward tho hahaha) shame that roman candle was placed on c and either/or on b, roman candle is very very lo-fi but i think that's what makes it unique and charming in a way, there's something about listening to roman candle songs on a rainy or cloudy day that hits differently personally i think either/or is his masterpiece (not saying the others arent i have a very fond care for figure 8 and self-titled), as a showing of what he can do, even with his more lo-fi sound. also new moon is just gorgeous overall my favourite tracks of his are single file, no name #3 and many many others like pitseleh or better be quiet now. overall, great review for the classics week and glad to finally see your take on his albums!
I admire the boldness it takes to do something like putting Either/Or in B tier. I also think it's silly :) Cheers for the late night entertainment, these videos are always fun
I can't believe this. Elliott Smith is my favorite artist ever and watching more and more people make content about his music makes me really happy. Figure 8 is definitely S tier, my favorite album of all time.
Melon: You know you're my dude and all, but From a Basement on the Hill fucking slaps. Part of me feels like you were just didn't struggling to not put everything in A or S tier. King's Crossing alone makes it at least a B.
Elliotts music is haunting but basement is truly haunting New moon, i dont see it as an album really. Should have made a single disc. All the unreleased stuff, holy cow, they feel like an album in itself.
A Fond Farewell off Basement is one of the few tracks that I really can't/shouldn't listen to. It's one of my favorites for him in theory but whenever it comes on regularly it's a sign lf my mental state deterrioating & frankly having it on repeat doesn't help. Such a shame. Love his music though, Say Yes & Angeles can stilll leave me hopeful. Going Nowhere has been good to me when I'm stuck where I don't wang to be & inspires me to move forward. Whatever folk song C helps me with being receptive to other peoples affection even when I don't feel worthy!
Might nut with all this Elliott Smith you're giving me. He really helped me through my early twenties. And, man, he could really writed a chord progression! No matter how old I get and how silly I feel looking back at what I once was, I'll never regret listening to Elliott as much as I did. S - Elliott Smith, XO, Figure 8 A - Ethier/or (some favourites, a few of my least-favourite), New Moon B - Roman Candle Live recordings are also a treasure trove and are widely available on RUclips. They're probably my favourite way to listen to him today. Didn't include From a Basement on a Hill...never felt comfortable with it as an Elliott record.
Considering either/or is the album that introduced me to Elliott’s work it will always be a favorite. That being said, it’s just a testament to how incredible of an artist he was that he could release 3 other albums which could all be considered even better.
Either/Or in B-tier is surprising! I would definitely put it in S or at least A tier. I might be a bit biased though as it's the first Elliott Smith record I discovered so it's definitely a factor.
Elliott was truly a once in a lifetime artistic visionary! Genius wordplay, total originality, probably the most vulnerable and raw material out there, the INSANE guitar skills, the storytelling, the uncanny ability to create tracks with bright and whimsical instrumentals opposing the darkest lyrics you’ve ever heard, the brutal honesty, the experimentalism, etc. In my opinion, you could not possibly overstate Elliott’s talent and contribution to music and to people’s lives all around the world.
I'm genuinely baffled by your take on "From a Basement on the Hill". The self-titled is certainly s-tier, no question, but if I had to choose any other album of his to be s-tier, it'd have to be Basement. "A Fond Farewell", "Pretty (Ugly Before)", "Twilight". These are some of his best songs. You poo-pooed "Coast to Coast", but man, I wish any generic indie rock song could be half as good as that track. There will always be the what-if of had he lived to see it finished, but god damn did he leave us with some of his strongest work in my opinion.
I completely agree with you man, Coast to Coast, as an album opener is unbelievably powerful and is great start to his final opus. And it ends beautifully too, with A distorted reality is now a necessity to be free. I can't understand how people say it Isn't a good album
Elliott Smith actually went to my college (Daniel Lopatin did as well). I go to Hampshire and one of my music teachers has been there forever and remembers teaching both Smith and Lopatin
XO is my favorite album of Elliott's but I actually totally agree with your comments after hearing them - his voice doesn't always match the heavier electric instrumentation, especially on tracks like Amity, Sweet Adeline, and A Question Mark.
Word, Self titled and Figure 8 are by far my favorite albums. The rest are amazing still and there is not such thing as a bad Elliott Smith album imo. Hard to find a bad song he wrote. There maybe 1 or 2 that I find aren't up to the same level of songwriting as his other songs. However, I would put Roman Candle higher. I love that record a lot. I put it just under Self-titled. Especially because of its dingy, working-class quality. My Tier list goes: Figure 8, Self Titled Roman Candle, New Moon, Either/Or Xo From a Basement
I love fantano, but the fact that he missed the Elliott smith reference in frank oceans blonde proves to me he hasn’t given from a basement on a hill a good shot
I’d love to actually see those breakdowns of the Electric Light Orchestra people maybe in a tier list format? I’d also like to requests Bauhaus or Xiu Xiu tier list plssss
I remember reading when From A Basement on A Hill was released that his family came in and took of many songs from the unfinished record that were critical of them or painted them in a negative light and had them replaced with unfinished material that hadn't been intended for the original tracklist. This could explain why the record as a whole work seems disjointed and just not on part with the rest of his work.
Cal Chuchesta's Elliott Smith parody album: New Food 1. Everything's McNuggets to Me 2. The Biggest Pie 3. Talking to Dairy 4. Tray Mess 5. Eggroll In the Snow 6. Bottle Up All My Soda 7. Ramen Candle 8. Meats Mystery 9. Fed Right
For me the self titled album is the one, but they‘re all great and on either/or it‘s especially Rose Parade and Say Yes that i find so incredibly beautiful. Elliott Smith is and will always be a legend!!!
Figure 8 has definitely crept it’s way into becoming my favorite from him, with a tight second being either/or. Elliott himself also said in an interview that everything means nothing to me isn’t supposed to be viewed as sad, so do with that what you will
Honestly Fantano, as someone who is incredibly parasocially attached to Elliott, I 95% agree with your list (I love Basement but I agree it’s not completely finished) figure 8 is imo the most overlooked album of all time
Finally! Someone who likes Figure 8 as much as me. I think a lot of people write it off almost just because it was his final album release while alive and it seems more hip to name drop a previous record. I LOVE the production on here as well the experimentation and the songs are just haunting yet have a whimsical quality on tracks like Everything Means Nothing To Me and the short piano cut Bye. The whole album is 0 skips for me. I rarely here people praise Figure 8. I love the whole discography but Figure 8 just has such fantastic lush more full production. Also the concept of “Figure 8” with the idea of ice skaters working so hard to make something perfect but ultimately being sort of inconsequential as this sort of philosophy for the human struggle to find purpose in life. Also with it being his last living record Figure 8 turn it sideways and it makes me think Elliott Smith forever ♾. Amazing artist. Rest his soul.
I think some of the songs on From a Basement on the Hill, like King's Crossing, are some of the best songs lyrically that Elliott ever wrote. But I understand that the album is a little more experimental. I real somewhere that he was really getting into using noise a lot in songs around that time.
it's crazy what I've read online people saying you're kind of pretentious to put roman candle, or even self-titled as your favorite albums. it's just like you say, self-titled is peak Elliott, and I find it so hard to dispute!! big gap between listeners who can't see its appeal for whatever reason (those mentioned). I think it's legitimate to put roman candle as peak Elliott too since it's him at his most intimate and sweet (in a way), self-title and on-wards he was making his lyrics more ambiguous, which isn't inherently a minus, but yeah. I think roman candle can hit hard, and it's valid to appreciate that. fun video and I respect the list for real. Elliott is my gem in life.
Would love to hear you review Figure 8. So many talking points on that record. Every track is unique. The Abby Road inspiration. The opening track as you mention but the closer as well. And a song title that Gotye pinched? Maybe.
I completely agree - Figure 8 is such a fantastic album. So many beautiful tracks, just so good. All of Elliott's albums are amazing in their own unique way though.
Elliott Smith hits in a way nothing else does, I try not to use this term for much but he gets the pain right, his voice is something comforting, I can listen to him and I know I'm not alone
Either/or is s tier !!!!
you have wonderful hair.
fantano took a pitchfork type take w that
lmao rating figure 8 above either/or
Agreed, I would swap the placement of XO with Either/Or.
fr
No other artist has ever touched my soul with music like Elliott Smith
I agree without a hint of exaggeration.
Dr Melfi would be so proud, Tony
Tony sitting by his pool listening to Ballad of Big Nothing waiting for the ducks to come back
@aloevv𖤐 average yt
@aloevv𖤐 *form a short sentence correctly
the best part of figure 8 is the double whammy of "everything reminds me of her" followed by "everything means nothing to me" so incredible.
“WHAMMY!”
Figure 8 is great. But X/O is just as good.
Yes
Insane back to back
I really don’t get how underrated Roman Candle is. Maybe I just don’t care about production values as much but there’s not a single track I skip, it also paints one of the clearest pictures/atmosphere through all the songs and how they tie together which I think the raw lo-fi helps with.
Big agree. Roman Candle is easily one of his best albums. Roman Candle, Last Call, Condor Ave?! Cmon man, those songs are fucking amazing, and those are just the named songs.
Roman Candle have amazing song´s.
Someone gets it. It's one of his best albums in my opinion, next to Either/Or for pure lyricism and masterful chord painting. It's better than his Self Titled imo
i'd personally consider roman candle b tier
title track has a bad hook and last call is a mess with bad production and vocals, but everything else is really damn solid honestly
especially love condor ave, the complete shock and despair depicted in the song is unmatched by anything else elliott put out later in his career imo
Title track genuinely ruins me
Hot hot takes here
Dumb takes honestly
Either/or dOeS nOt hAuNt mE
Tf it's not supposed to its about the aesthetic and imagery(instrumentally and songwriting wise)
Such a bad take i hate him so much
holy shit david firth
The Waller FM version of 2:45 am is S-Tier
Didnt know davidfirth liked elliot smith
was not expecting figure 8 to wind up in s but i'm pleasantly surprised!
i'd probably put xo and either/or in s too but i'll let it slide.
Please try to do a mash-up of one of Elliott Smithʼs songs.
@aloevv𖤐 you good ?
It was awesome to see that, I was beginning to think I was the only Elliott Smith fan who exaggerated his love for Figure 8. Meanwhile I find XO super overrated, im kinda the opposite of most fellow Elliott Smith fans 🙃
Figure 8 definitely my favorite
@@skatiputnik2431 same here
From A Basement On The Hill is such a phenomenal album!
The haunting loneliness you can hear from Elliot’s trembling voice while he sings over those intricate guitar parts is just something you can’t skip.
My personal favorites are “Coast To Coast,” “A Distorted Reality,” “Memory Lane,” ”Kings Crossing” and “Shooting Star”
It’s gotta be S tier!
Memory lane is honestly one of, if not his greatest song imo
yeh the writing is incredible, apparently he wrote it while he was in a psychiatric hospital @@lockyp204
Same feelings that album is my favorite, also just mentioning "the last hour", "strung out again" and "a passing feeling"
even songs many don't like such as coast to coast sound haunting, each song is different.
I like Basement way better than figure 8. I though figure 8 was his weakest album, but maybe I need to give it another listen.
Melon slandering Coast to Coast is a travesty. From a Basement is fantastic, the keys made every song they were in better.
He didn't even mention King's Crossing, the best ES song
coast to coast is one of his best songs along with memory lane
I guess the production choices are a love and hate thing. I personally love the rough and unique production choices (I.e double tracked drums and distortion). Would love to see a deluxe of it like they did for either or
The production kinda ruins that one for me sadly. Memory Lane on that album is one of my all time favorite songs by Elliott though and I never really hear that one talked about
@@spamsingles5948 I felt that way at first but I fell in love with every part of it
XO is still an all time favourite of mine, but man, what an incredible discography. When Roman Candle is your worst album you know you're doing well
also for reference:
S - XO
A - Figure 8, Self Titled
B - Either/Or, Roman Candle
C - New Moon, From a basement on the hill
@@clumpofcats awful ranking of his albums
I agree XO has always been my favorite but every album is amazing
Glad to meet another XO person
XO squad
Bro I was not expecting so much Elliott Smith content in 1 week but I’m not complaining 😭
loving the elliott smith videos, a great artist that everyone should listen to
Loving the Honeybear profile picture
If an individual wishes to adquire depression
such an underappreciated artist imo
@Caio Andrade if beautiful music depresses you
Nah, I don’t support gatekeeping in any of its forms but Elliott Smith is possibly the one artist I’m apprehensive to share with other people.
Elliott Smith is such a special artist. A pure soul. Everything he sang about was straight from the heart. The guy had so much humility...
Not one album above an 8.4328+ Bladee wipes
@@daniellopez732 edgelord lol
@@daniellopez732 cringe
Elliot Smith went to my high school, theres a really cool culture surrounding him there, I dont think I would have discovered his music as early as I did had I not gone to Lincoln.
@aloevv𖤐 hey stfu it’s pretty interesting
@aloevv𖤐 that's cool, but I didn't ask
@aloevv𖤐 true, although it seems like sum ppl thought it was interesting
Hey that's crazy I just graduated from Lincoln last year, I was a huge fan of him before transferring there and when I saw that plaque of him in the hall I was blown away lol
Roman Candle feels like a high B or low A to me. It's a little rough around the edges, but most songs did a great job setting up ideas and themes to be expanded on down the road. Condor Ave, No Name 3, and Last Call are all standouts.
The fact that he wrote Condor Ave at age 17 is mind blowing to me. At age 17 I was spending my time being sad listening to his music LOL
@@ben-ty9jo I spent my 17 trying to make music, but it was beyond awful
It's S tier dude. You're listening to the birth of a genius
hard agree
I think its high A but i just love all his records that much
Let's be frank: It's all A-tier at the very least.
It's like Nick Drake. There is no bad Nick Drake because I feel super sad after listening to him.
Bryter Layter occasionally comes off bland and uninspired.
@@tylersquanto8938 that's crazy cause bryter layter is my favorite nick drake album
@@tylersquanto8938 breh
It isn't bad if it's in B or even C tier
Really hoping Pink Moon gets a classic review someday
From A Basement on a Hill is potentially my favorite of his. I actually enjoy the production. I think it sounds less compressed and a bit more natural than figure 8, and I think it's probably his most heart wrenching. Figure 8 is his most grand and probably best songwriting though.
from a basement is also my fav. really love the production and the nasty sounding guitar tones on the album
Seriously some of his most heartbreaking songs. A distorted reality is now a necessity to be free, a Fond farewell, and Kings crossing are all perfect
From a basement was the first Elliott album I ever heard. Found it at a CD shop in Vancouver and picked it out just cause I thought the artwork was cool. Listened to it on the drive back to the Okanagan, hated it and didn't listen again for a few weeks. I usually liked singers with big voices at that point. Then, despite myself, it grew and grew on me till Elliott became one of my favourite artists and inspired a lot of my own work. 'Twilight' is gorgeous, 'Fond Farewell', 'Pretty (Ugly Before)'. I could go on. First time judging something by its cover ended up being really accurate. I love seeing people talk about him. I'm going to listen to Figure Eight now.
I was sleeping on from a basement for years and honestly it does have some of his best work IMO. Twilight is one of the most haunting songs I’ve ever heard while still being gut wrenchingly beautiful. I can’t get it out of my head recently
💯 it’s his master works in my opinion
To me none of these albums is less that a B, literally a perfect discography (I disagree with either/or in B, but I LOVED IT WHEN YOU PUT FIGURE 8 IN THE S!!!!)
Figure 8 in S made me genuinely so happy just because that album is banger after banger
I’ve been trying to convince people that figure 8 is his best project for so long. It always seems to be underrated for some reason.
@@J.T.mus1c Yeah I heard that album in 2018 it was an instant 10/10
the track "roman candle" is one of my favorite elliott smith songs. chilling and weirdly catchy i love it.
the electric guitar sounds like it's on fire. best tone ever.
@@makkietakkie yessss such a great tone
he played himself
The lyrics are so haunting
I waannna hurt 'im
I only learned of his music about 10 years ago but in the early 2000's he was a regular in my neighborhood at a few Starbucks among few other places and specifically a record shop. He was in a lot of my friends top 8 on myspace and I just thought he was a local with ties to my friend circles. I knew a lot of people in music and never put it together he was a musician. I just knew him as the guy who hated me immensely. I was a skater nu metal looking local hoodlum punk type and I think my existence just offended him. I will never forget the day I had to interrupt him talking to the record shop guys talking about the music that was playing ( I didn't know he was previewing some of his stuff to them at the time I think it was his eventual 2004 album ) to ask for the Anal Cunt CD's I had them put on special order for me and thank them for recommending Agoraphobic Nosebleed. The look of disgust on his face was hilarious.
That's crazy
I have the same look of disgust just reading that cringeful story.
@@danielandrewgrant Well I’m sure if he were still around and the guys from the shop that I know are still around making music would have more of a sense humor about it than you.
reminds me of the “i met flying lotus in a grocery store” copypasta. king shit undoubtedly
@@Horsediqdotmpeg Apparently you don’t recognize humor when you see it since that was a joke. All good. ✌🏻
anthony, you putting figure 8 in S tier gave me a second lease on life. kiss me melon man
I'm on Same train
Better be quiet now and Happiness are so good
I really disagree with the from a basement… placement. I think it’s his most unique album and it’s my personal favorite lyrically. I think the ideas on there work. There are some low points on it but i love the majority of it so much i’d put it A tier.
From a Basement is much better than this guy gave it credit for. However, would have been even better if Elliott had lived to complete it.
@@danielandrewgrant for sure. I believe “stickman”, “see you in heaven” and “abused” were songs left off it and those would’ve definitely added to it. Some of my favorite songs by him.
@@layne4760 don’t forget Living Will
@@layne4760 abused blew me away the first time I heard it
correct take. ‘twilight’ is my favorite elliott song. that and ‘new disaster’ off of new moon
personally, roman candle and elliott’s self titled are my favorites because of the subtle but real raw indie feel they emit that i haven’t heard in many other records. great stuff :)
Yes, there's something really appealing in the rough and gritty quality of the earlier albums that makes them special to me. Not that the later ones were bad by any means
@@kide9747 yes very true. like figure 8 is a complete opposite of his early albums but so good and intense.
I love Roman candle
@@sergiomunoz1397 yes me too
Oh my god what is happening, I just got obsessed with Elliott Smith starting a month ago, listened to his entire discography and bought every album on vinyl, and suddenly all this great Elliott content from you!!
Yoooo didn’t know you were into Elliott !! That’s awesome :D
the same happened to me lol
i respect your feelings, but tbh i think 'From a Basement on the Hill' is the absolute greatest collection of Elliott's tracks that exists. a 10/10 masterpiece.
Some of his best songs are on that album. "Fond Farwell" is one of the best songs ever written.
@@gotf yes, that and twilight are my favorites of Elliott
I agree
@@zhenia2511 GIVE ME ONE GOOD REASON NOT TO DO IT
Totally agree!! In my opinion from a basement on the hill has his saddest songs
IMO that new Elliott Smith album "Punisher" should've been in A tier. Weird how he started dressing in a skeleton onesie for that one though
Don’t even try to make that comparison.
Lmaoo
She has a better discography than him already
@@birdworldist I love phoebe but please tell me you’re joking.
Phoebe Bridgers is a phoney. A pretender to the crown.
Man, Basement is severely underrated here. Easily the best songwriting of his career, and the most personal by far
I wish Elliott Smith was alive to see the love his fans have for him. Rest In Peace❤
Love this, can you do a Phil Elverum (Microphones/Mount Eerie) list next??
Usually people gravitate either towards his early albums or later ones, so it's nice to see the two very different sounds of self titled and Figure 8 up there. I think Figure 8 often gets overlooked next to the hits on Either/Or and XO, but it really does have some of Elliott's best songwriting. He was very proud of Everything Means Nothing to Me, and for very good reason.
From a Basement on the Hill has got to be the most underrated album of all time. No album has garnered more of my appreciation over time than that one. From me not wanting it, to me not preferring it, to me casually liking it, all the way to my mind being blown away, obliterated. It left me just completely and utterly impressed after a few months, connected to music at a higher level than I previously knew possible. So it's a shame that the album won't get the props I think it deserves. But I also can understand why because I remember how long it took me to be with it until it connected to me in that way which I would never have expected. So if you read this, give that album a chance over time. Let it play on shuffle for a few car rides. Sometimes during the day, some at night. Stick with it. There's something extraordinary behind that effort.
Likewise. Its become my favourite album of his. I think early post humous reviews werent sure what to make of it and they kept reminding us that it was finished without him and thats why so many fans wrote it off as not his best effort
Same here I adore from a basement on a hill
I love this comment. This is precisely how I got into him. I discovered his post humous material first. A friend of mine that I respected musically swore they Elliott was great so I just kept trying and eventually fell in love
can’t describe how nice it is to see melon giving elliott’s discography the attention it deserves
that being said “strung out again” is a MASTERPIECE
I'm suprised to say I couldn't disagree more, because I agree with so many of your reviews (really love how you broke down Daughters' You Won't Get What You Want, for example). ANYWAY Not only is FABOTH a top all time album, but Strung Out Again is a highlight. The dynamic and tonal range of the music, the emotional range of the lyrics, help tell a story of confusion, pain, and self-betrayal with brutal candor. Here's where the pop sugar coating he had a knack for gets perfected...and sand blasted off. If it didn't give you the shivers from the very first listen, it's probably a good thing you can't feel it or otherwise relate....
I totally Agree with you, but, this album was with me during HS while I was a heroin Addict, was a abused.
So Elliott at the time HIT EVERYTHING. So I believe were alittle Bias.
Fr Basement is one of my favorites too. King’s Crossing is one of my favorite songs of his full stop
So glad you gave figure 8 an S tier, I love that album. Would’ve been interesting if you included Heatmiser albums
FABOTH is my favorite Elliott Smith record of all time - it's so. just. I'm speechless. Deserves S tier.
Also, I love Roman Candle so much - it feels unfinished because it was 😭lmao - not sure what the exact sourcing is behind this, but Genius contributors say he literally recorded the whole thing on a 4-track by himself, so it makes sense that it's more bare-bones. Bc of that, I think it deserves to be sooo much higher -- the production quality isn't the best because he was using what he had, yk? The songs are so good regardless.
Can’t believe you haven’t done a Fugazi or Death tier list. They both have size-able discographies with records that sound relatively different than each other
Would watch both of these a million times over
Fugazi would be something like:
S tier: 13 songs - Repeater - Red Medicine - The Argument
A: In on the kill taker - End hits
B: Steady diet of nothing
There you have it.
@@Rodrigombia1990 I think in on the kill taker is s tier personally but it was also my first Fugazi record so there may be some bias there
Death Tier List
S: Leprosy, Human, Symbolic
A: Spiritual Healing, Individual Thought, Sound of Perseverance
B: Scream Bloody Gore
@@IveGotToast i really feel like he'd give TSOP a C rating or below... doesnt seem to like much prog metal and Death went pretty much full prog at that point
From a basement on the hill is a top tier album, it not being finished adds to the quality of the album. Classic.
I dont know why melon kept putting every record on S, but i completely agree.
I’m very pleasantly surprised to see Figure 8 in S tier. Always been one of my favorites of his and for some reason it seems to be somewhat underrated in his discography.
Either/Or is S. Hall of Fame needs this artist. Thanks for covering Elliot.
Roman candle has slowly become one of my favorites over time. Has a unique feel to it.
Yeah it was the first album of his I listened to, Roman Candle, Condor Avenue and then all the noname songs are all some of my favourite acoustic tracks ever. Drive all over town is okay, kinda boring I thought and I feel similarly about Last Call too. The madding 2020 song is cool though
I cant say enough about the healing powers of most of his work. I wouldn't be so inclined to say its "depression music" but more like "throwing water on the flames of the burning building you're stuck in when your in a mental rut music". Its "lullabies for the beaten down" I just wish that everyone who needs him, gets him.
BIG COMMENT TIME: This is easily the most excited I've ever been to watch a video of yours. Holy shit I can't wait. I'm going to give little write-ups on your opinions as I watch!
Roman Candle: C Tier is fair, considering what you said in the intro about C tier still being an amazing project in the grand scheme of things. Some of his all time best songs are on here, like the title track and Condor Avenue, and it also includes his most underrated track for me: No Name #3. Overall this album has many of the haunting, spidery/cobwebby qualities as the self-titled, but he hasn't quite fleshed it all out yet.
Elliott Smith (Self-Titled): Absolutely Agree. As someone who got into Elliott Smith through XO and his other more-produced works, I didn't expect this one to ever blow me away, going into it knowing that it was more stripped back and barren. But sure enough, it quietly and steadily grew on me to become maybe my all time favorite of his albums (although it's ultimately impossible to decide and my favorite changes every month, regardless, this is my most listened to album of his). The absolute genius of those sparse, steady, often mere step-apart chords of Needle In The Hay, beginning with the right channel, and filling the full stereo field by the third chord, never fails to immediately suck me into the haunted soundscape this album creates (and creates, keep in mind, with remarkably little: guitar and voice). Arrangement-wise, this album is perfect. Each guitar part is so full and rich on its own, (a given for Elliott Smith), but the few moments where he extends the song beyond just guitar and vocals are nothing short of brilliant: The ghostly harmonica on Alphabet Town, the otherworldly, ethereal electric guitars on Satellite (at the 1:30 mark), and the breathing keys on Coming Up Roses all fill my soul with so much rich, indescribable emotion that it's overwhelming. This album is flawless. S Tier, easily.
Either/Or: Strangely enough, this is another 100% agree moment. Great job, melon! Our opinions have significant overlap :) This is the album I would want to feel like an S tier album, as it is for so many others, but I feel like it just has some brief lulls in the middle and nearing the end. I can understand how, for other people, they might not be lulls at all, and if the offending songs I had in mind weren't right next to each other (like Cupid's Trick being next to 2:45, both of which I like, but not love like the songs around them) then perhaps I would put this album in A Tier. With that criticism out of the way, I must say that the three track run from Rose Parade, Punch and Judy, to Angeles, is one of my favorite album sections of any album of his. The way the tape hiss fades into Rose Parade soothes my soul, those mellow Punch and Judy verses swing me into the same warmth as a parent's low vocal rumblings as you lay against their chest, half asleep and cozy: and the Angeles Intro? The best guitar work of his lifetime. Bold statement, I know, but the soft dynamic range and and incomprehensible intricacy and intimacy of that finger-picking intro is something literally nobody in the history of music has ever achieved, nor ever will again (at least emotionally. Nothing will ever make me feel the way that makes me feel). And Say Yes? SAY FUCKING YES? His second best song (in my opinion, of course). It's not as cryptic and dream-like as much of his other songwriting is, which makes it, in my opinion, his most accessible love song. Not to mention that that it has the greatest opening line of any song of all time.
XO: This is the fist one where I'm going to have to disagree with you, chief. XO is S tier for me. I wouldn't call it flawless, as I would for the self-titled, but considering the greater scope, and how it manages to fully realize and accomplish everything within that scope, I'd have to put it up there with the best. I wouldn't have put it in S when I first got into it (even when it was my favorite of his works), but the songs which once held it back for me (like Waltz #1 and A Question Mark) have grown on me so significantly (over the course of maybe 100 listens) that they now elevate it to the top. Bled White is my favorite Elliott Smith song. It bursts with some of the best, catchiest, most uplifting energy of any of his songs. The first 7 tracks of this album are fucking unbelievable. Like I said, I love Waltz #1 now, but it changes the direction of the album from what comes before it. That first run of seven songs (seven fucking songs in a row!!!) is my favorite passage of music, surpassing the Abbey Road medley. The mesmerizing descending guitar on Sweet Adeline, the "I've got static in my head" moment of Tomorrow, Tomorrow, the heart-lifting "On and on and on" bridge of Waltz #2 XO (his greatest bridge), the weirdly out-of-tune shrill but exciting tones at the end of Baby Britain, the crushing piano solo on Pitseleh, the intro guitar and drums into the drum loop of Independence Day, and ALL of Bled White make up the most exhilarating listening experience I've ever had the unbelievable fortune to experience. As a staunch Atheist, it makes me want to believe in a God, so I can thank them for putting me on Earth at a time where I can experience this album. 10/10.
Figure 8: Another big fat agree Mister Tony. This one might actually be an in-between A-tier and S-tier for me, and not as completely unfuckwithable as you claim it to be, but it's hard to find fault in this album (besides maybe The Roost and The Gondola Man, which feel a little tacked on and don't add much for me). Elliott Smith is the only person who could make a song called "Somebody That I Used To Know" and it be the best song with that title. (I'm aware that the Gotye song came out afterwards lol. I think that son slaps too, but the lyrics and finger-picking of Elliott Smith's are unbeatable). Wish you had mentioned the bridge of "In The Lost and Found." A classic example of Elliott playing like five major chords in a row that somehow create the saddest, most soul-stirring music you've ever heard, which just primes your heart and spirit for destruction, and then he plays one minor chord, and your heart just completely shatters. This is his most listenable album, and undoubtedly a masterpiece.
From A Basement on the Hill: Hey there big guy. You know you're my little buddy, my strong man, right? My little sweet Anthony. Me your mom just wanted to let you know that we love you, even if your opinion of this album is fucking garbage. I don't mean to be belligerent, because I sincerely want you to revisit this album with open ears after I talk a little about it. This album could be his best. Along with Mac Miller's Circles, this is the greatest album that has ever been completed after an artist's death that has ever existed. It's fucking unbelievable how good this album is, considering Elliott didn't get final say on it. It's even missing some of its best tracks, like Abused (you have to check that out, it's on RUclips). Your criticism on the tone of this album being "standard, bland indie rock" seems a little strange to me: I understand that this album is heavier and more distorted, like many indie rock albums, but it's also incredibly warped in a way that draws no other comparison to mind. This album has his best synesthetic audio-to-visual production. When I listen to this album, it's like I'm taken into these Salvador Dali cathedrals, with twisting walls and cold, blue stained glass reflecting into my inner mind and body, where my body floats up to the ceiling of the cathedral as I become completely enveloped in the distorted warmth of Smith's sound: and then, in the next moment, I'm taken to a small, quiet stream, sitting on the green bank, totally lost in a dream: This is what it feels like to listen to Coast to Coast followed by Let's Get Lost. Let yourself get lost in the soundscape that these songs create. Let the brilliance of the rhythmic melody of A Fond Farewell sweep you away into a dark, dark place, and feel as submissive to void and oblivion as Elliott Smith feels in King's Crossing, which is, you may have guessed his. all. time. best. song. The most moving, sob-inducing piece of art I've ever experienced. The bitterness and resignation of a line like "But I don't care if I fuck up / I'm going on a date with a rich wife lady / Ain't life great? / Give me one good reason not to do it" has no parallel, and maybe thank God for that. This album has no bad tracks. This album has no mid tracks. This album has no good tracks. This album has only great tracks, incredible tracks, and some of the greatest songs of all time. I wish we could know what it would have been as a double album, as he intended: but if the half-finished product is this good, what he would have created, had he not tragically passed away, may have been the greatest album of all time.
New Moon: B tier is a good choice for me as well. There's not as much to say about this one, other than the usual: some of his best tracks are on here (Angel in the Snow, Going Nowhere, New Disaster, and See You Later, which is better than the Heatmiser version, and absolutely insane that he sang and played it all in one take on live radio), but I understand this one is probably more for the hardcore fans. Still, the fact that a POSTHUMOUS COMPILATION album is this good speaks to the sheer quality of Elliott Smith's work. Either of those words, posthumous or compilation, is enough to give any music lover the bad taste of a corporate cash grab in their mouth, but here, it actually strengthens his legacy and compiles some of his best work together.
And those are all of my opinions on your opinions, Antknee! Thank you for reading all this, whoever is out there. I'll leave you with my favorite Elliott Smith Lyric, and I hope you all have a wonderful New Year, under a spiritual Old Sun, and haunted New Moon.
Day breaks
But every morning
When he wakes
He thinks of you
Oh my fucking god Denson LOL
brilliant xD ❤️
I don’t listen to alot of Elliott anymore but ‘From a basement on a hill’ has become his best for me
I was introduced with Either/Or, so it's one of my favourite albums ever, though personally my top is XO - the run of songs that goes Waltz #2/Baby Britain/Pitseleh/Independence Day is one of my favourite runs of songs on any album ever.
Always glad to see love for New Moon though - such an underrated album! Either way, no Elliott album is bad, and while we differ on favourites I won't argue with your top picks. All of them have their strengths
Biggest ES fan here, I know all his songs including unreleased stuff inside and out... and Independence Day is his best in my opinion. My favourite changes all the time of course, but that song is actually perfect
Couldn't agree any more. I'm blind to/avoidant of certain music that others fawn over, as was the case when friends & the press elevated his earlier work to rarified heights - my elitist bias at work. Thus, I only jumped into him w XO after the hubbub thinned out. That album was a soundtrack to my life in NYC for a long time and still holds up: every track is amazing, an evocative, seamless album.
100%. That run of songs is just stunning.
I think Melon misunderstood FABOAH - Elliott was very much into dirtying up his sound. And I like the direction he was going in. Also, IIRC, Shooting Star was intended to be the album opener and I think it helps to listen to the record that way.
I would also push new moon and either/or up a tier. I was super bummed still when I bought new moon - took me about a year to really sit and listen to it, but maaaaaaaan was it ever worth it. Some of his best moments.
After being casually into Elliot Smith’s music over the years, I fell deeply in love with his work this past year. His music has reinvigorated my own singer-songwriter aspirations. While Either/Or and XO have been my favorites, I also do love the self-titled release. Some songs from Figure 8 for sure. And there’s still more of his catalog I’ve yet to acquaint myself with.
So appreciate that you’ve come out with these videos on Elliot’s work recently, Anthony Fantano 🖤🤘🏼 It’s a pleasure to hear you discuss them.
The amount of 'unreleased' songs is unbelievable as well cuz they're all superb as well and goes to show how consistently great he was.
Roman Candle has gotta be my favorite for sure. It's so bare bones, it's 100% pure Elliott and showcases his talent as a songwriter without needing to be polished. And Kiwi Maddog 2020 is one of the coolest instrumentals ever.
I’m one of those guys who thinks Either/Or is “the one”. But I also think the other ones are great too
happy to see you gave figure 8 an S! i love every single elliott smith album and figure 8 was the first cd i bought with my own money when i was like 15 or 16 (the car ride home with my parents listening to it was a little awkward tho hahaha)
shame that roman candle was placed on c and either/or on b, roman candle is very very lo-fi but i think that's what makes it unique and charming in a way, there's something about listening to roman candle songs on a rainy or cloudy day that hits differently
personally i think either/or is his masterpiece (not saying the others arent i have a very fond care for figure 8 and self-titled), as a showing of what he can do, even with his more lo-fi sound. also new moon is just gorgeous overall
my favourite tracks of his are single file, no name #3 and many many others like pitseleh or better be quiet now.
overall, great review for the classics week and glad to finally see your take on his albums!
Figure 8 is my favorite Elliot Smith album, and yet still underrated. It's a masterpiece!
Glad to see Figure 8 getting some deserved love
I admire the boldness it takes to do something like putting Either/Or in B tier. I also think it's silly :)
Cheers for the late night entertainment, these videos are always fun
Independence Day doesn’t get the praise it deserves the guitar riff is nothing short of beautiful
I can't believe this. Elliott Smith is my favorite artist ever and watching more and more people make content about his music makes me really happy. Figure 8 is definitely S tier, my favorite album of all time.
Melon: You know you're my dude and all, but From a Basement on the Hill fucking slaps. Part of me feels like you were just didn't struggling to not put everything in A or S tier. King's Crossing alone makes it at least a B.
Waltz no 2 and Kings Crossing = best elliott songs. the big climactic "give me one good reason not to do it" in King's Crossing gives me goosebumps
And the little voice singing, 'Becasue I love You!' that follows is hidden enough but it's there and it hits me!
Elliotts music is haunting but basement is truly haunting
New moon, i dont see it as an album really. Should have made a single disc.
All the unreleased stuff, holy cow, they feel like an album in itself.
A Fond Farewell off Basement is one of the few tracks that I really can't/shouldn't listen to. It's one of my favorites for him in theory but whenever it comes on regularly it's a sign lf my mental state deterrioating & frankly having it on repeat doesn't help.
Such a shame. Love his music though, Say Yes & Angeles can stilll leave me hopeful. Going Nowhere has been good to me when I'm stuck where I don't wang to be & inspires me to move forward. Whatever folk song C helps me with being receptive to other peoples affection even when I don't feel worthy!
Oh god I feel this so hard
Might nut with all this Elliott Smith you're giving me. He really helped me through my early twenties. And, man, he could really writed a chord progression! No matter how old I get and how silly I feel looking back at what I once was, I'll never regret listening to Elliott as much as I did.
S - Elliott Smith, XO, Figure 8
A - Ethier/or (some favourites, a few of my least-favourite), New Moon
B - Roman Candle
Live recordings are also a treasure trove and are widely available on RUclips. They're probably my favourite way to listen to him today.
Didn't include From a Basement on a Hill...never felt comfortable with it as an Elliott record.
Considering either/or is the album that introduced me to Elliott’s work it will always be a favorite. That being said, it’s just a testament to how incredible of an artist he was that he could release 3 other albums which could all be considered even better.
Either/Or in B-tier is surprising! I would definitely put it in S or at least A tier. I might be a bit biased though as it's the first Elliott Smith record I discovered so it's definitely a factor.
Im fucking with this Elliot smith praise , he’s literally the only tolerable artist who I can say was from my city
bro what about conor oberst/ bright eyes??
i’ve always been a sucker for elliot’s more accoustic music, thats why his first 3 albums are definitely my favorites
Elliott was truly a once in a lifetime artistic visionary! Genius wordplay, total originality, probably the most vulnerable and raw material out there, the INSANE guitar skills, the storytelling, the uncanny ability to create tracks with bright and whimsical instrumentals opposing the darkest lyrics you’ve ever heard, the brutal honesty, the experimentalism, etc. In my opinion, you could not possibly overstate Elliott’s talent and contribution to music and to people’s lives all around the world.
Roman Candle, Either/Or and Self Titled are all undoubtedly S-tier. Roman candle in particular doesn’t have a single skippable track.
I'm genuinely baffled by your take on "From a Basement on the Hill". The self-titled is certainly s-tier, no question, but if I had to choose any other album of his to be s-tier, it'd have to be Basement. "A Fond Farewell", "Pretty (Ugly Before)", "Twilight". These are some of his best songs. You poo-pooed "Coast to Coast", but man, I wish any generic indie rock song could be half as good as that track. There will always be the what-if of had he lived to see it finished, but god damn did he leave us with some of his strongest work in my opinion.
I completely agree with you man, Coast to Coast, as an album opener is unbelievably powerful and is great start to his final opus. And it ends beautifully too, with A distorted reality is now a necessity to be free. I can't understand how people say it Isn't a good album
S: From a basement on the Hill, Either Or
A: XO, Self-Titled
B: Figure 8
C: New Moon, Roman Candle
As others have mentioned, his work is all s tier/a tier. Greatest songwriter ever.
Elliott Smith actually went to my college (Daniel Lopatin did as well). I go to Hampshire and one of my music teachers has been there forever and remembers teaching both Smith and Lopatin
from a basement on the hill is literally the most well-produced album i have ever heard anthony wyd
`i know! anthony what are you sayin!?
XO is my favorite album of Elliott's but I actually totally agree with your comments after hearing them - his voice doesn't always match the heavier electric instrumentation, especially on tracks like Amity, Sweet Adeline, and A Question Mark.
We need that Pink Floyd tier list, Mr Fantano.
Word, Self titled and Figure 8 are by far my favorite albums. The rest are amazing still and there is not such thing as a bad Elliott Smith album imo. Hard to find a bad song he wrote. There maybe 1 or 2 that I find aren't up to the same level of songwriting as his other songs. However, I would put Roman Candle higher. I love that record a lot. I put it just under Self-titled. Especially because of its dingy, working-class quality.
My Tier list goes:
Figure 8, Self Titled
Roman Candle, New Moon, Either/Or
Xo
From a Basement
You’re an S tier for me antnee 🥰
I love fantano, but the fact that he missed the Elliott smith reference in frank oceans blonde proves to me he hasn’t given from a basement on a hill a good shot
I’d love to actually see those breakdowns of the Electric Light Orchestra people maybe in a tier list format? I’d also like to requests Bauhaus or Xiu Xiu tier list plssss
I remember reading when From A Basement on A Hill was released that his family came in and took of many songs from the unfinished record that were critical of them or painted them in a negative light and had them replaced with unfinished material that hadn't been intended for the original tracklist. This could explain why the record as a whole work seems disjointed and just not on part with the rest of his work.
Cal Chuchesta's Elliott Smith parody album: New Food
1. Everything's McNuggets to Me
2. The Biggest Pie
3. Talking to Dairy
4. Tray Mess
5. Eggroll In the Snow
6. Bottle Up All My Soda
7. Ramen Candle
8. Meats Mystery
9. Fed Right
Elliott sitting on the stoop of the Basement cover judging Anthony back was my favorite part of this review.
For me the self titled album is the one, but they‘re all great and on either/or it‘s especially Rose Parade and Say Yes that i find so incredibly beautiful. Elliott Smith is and will always be a legend!!!
Still so sad and weird how he died, if he was still here, I wonder now many more great projects he would have made.
Figure 8 has definitely crept it’s way into becoming my favorite from him, with a tight second being either/or. Elliott himself also said in an interview that everything means nothing to me isn’t supposed to be viewed as sad, so do with that what you will
Honestly Fantano, as someone who is incredibly parasocially attached to Elliott, I 95% agree with your list (I love Basement but I agree it’s not completely finished) figure 8 is imo the most overlooked album of all time
Finally! Someone who likes Figure 8 as much as me. I think a lot of people write it off almost just because it was his final album release while alive and it seems more hip to name drop a previous record. I LOVE the production on here as well the experimentation and the songs are just haunting yet have a whimsical quality on tracks like Everything Means Nothing To Me and the short piano cut Bye. The whole album is 0 skips for me. I rarely here people praise Figure 8. I love the whole discography but Figure 8 just has such fantastic lush more full production. Also the concept of “Figure 8” with the idea of ice skaters working so hard to make something perfect but ultimately being sort of inconsequential as this sort of philosophy for the human struggle to find purpose in life. Also with it being his last living record Figure 8 turn it sideways and it makes me think Elliott Smith forever ♾. Amazing artist. Rest his soul.
literally half of the songs on either or are my favorite songs ever sometimes its crazy how consistent it is
I think some of the songs on From a Basement on the Hill, like King's Crossing, are some of the best songs lyrically that Elliott ever wrote. But I understand that the album is a little more experimental. I real somewhere that he was really getting into using noise a lot in songs around that time.
Hell yes on Figure 8 being in S Tier!!
Said “whooo baby” soon as I saw the notification
Pumped for this
Figure 8 is about 95% as good as XO to me but XO has infinite replay value to me and I will never dislike a song from it and yes I mean Amity too
it's crazy what I've read online people saying you're kind of pretentious to put roman candle, or even self-titled as your favorite albums. it's just like you say, self-titled is peak Elliott, and I find it so hard to dispute!! big gap between listeners who can't see its appeal for whatever reason (those mentioned).
I think it's legitimate to put roman candle as peak Elliott too since it's him at his most intimate and sweet (in a way), self-title and on-wards he was making his lyrics more ambiguous, which isn't inherently a minus, but yeah. I think roman candle can hit hard, and it's valid to appreciate that.
fun video and I respect the list for real. Elliott is my gem in life.
This list is wrong unless they're all S-tier.
Didn't see this when it came out... Stoked to hear you're fan and give Elliott some of the appreciation he so badly deserves!
Would love to hear you review Figure 8. So many talking points on that record. Every track is unique. The Abby Road inspiration. The opening track as you mention but the closer as well. And a song title that Gotye pinched? Maybe.
I completely agree - Figure 8 is such a fantastic album. So many beautiful tracks, just so good. All of Elliott's albums are amazing in their own unique way though.
You’re a legend. Love Elliot Smith, and I agree with almost all your takes here. Love the posthumous coverage you do as well. Making my year so far
I’m sad that either/or isn’t in your S tier, but I’m rlly happy you made this list!
FUCK YES, FIGURE 8 IS S TIER!
FIGURE 8 IS A MASTERPIECE!
Elliott Smith hits in a way nothing else does, I try not to use this term for much but he gets the pain right, his voice is something comforting, I can listen to him and I know I'm not alone
Greatest songwriter ever. Hands down.
This is the correct tier list, I wouldn’t move a single thing. S/t and Figure 8 are absolute classics.
From A Basement on the Hill is my favorite Elliott Smith album. From A Basement, Carrie and Lowell, and Pet Sounds are my all-time top 3.
My ranking would be
1. Figure 8
2. S/T
3. Either/Or
4. XO
5. Roman Candle
6. New Moon
7. Basement