Figure 8

04/20/2000 5:24 PM, Yahoo! Music
Rob O'Connor

Do you like the Beatles? Do you write songs? Does your voice sound a bit like Nick Drake (the guy you now hear singing "Pink Moon" in a VW commercial)? Well, then, you must be Elliott Smith.

Having figured out he was wasting his time sharing the spotlight with his band Heatmiser once his four-track recordings began attracting more attention, Smith has since entered real studios and lined up with producers Rothrock and Schnapf (Beck, Richard Thompson) for his latest. Unlike XO, which sounded like Smith being overwhelmed by the professional polish, Figure 8 settles into a modest groove. No great surprises.

Anyone familiar with his Beatle-influenced melodicism will recognize the lazy sway of "Junk Bond Trader" or the winsome longing of "Everything Reminds Me Of Her." There are nice ornamental touches here and there--a baroque keyboard, a punchy horn. One of these days the boy's gonna make a White Album all by himself.