From A Basement On The Hill
by Elliott Smith
  • Record Label: Anti
  • Release Date: Oct 19, 2004
User Score
8.8

Universal acclaim- based on 129 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 117 out of 129
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 129
  3. Negative: 7 out of 129

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  1. JeromeH
    Oct 18, 2004
    5
    This album is really not very good. It doesn't compare well with his older work, which wasn't all that great to begin with (in my opinion). I can guarantee you if Smith was still alive, the metacritic rating would drop 12-15 points. Dead musicians are always overrated. Yup, Hendrix, Cobain, Marley, and now Smith. You're rating an album, not giving a eulogy, fellas.
  2. PaulH
    Oct 15, 2005
    6
    this album isn't as good as they all say, it's not bad but it's Elliott's weakest album. but critics always do this to people who have just died, just like George Harrison and Warren Zevon's last albums which also weren't that great. Still though Elliott Smith was amazing and he'll be missed.
  3. HyphenatedMeta
    Aug 6, 2023
    5
    I had a long drive yesterday, a perfect opportunity to queue up this masterpiece and let it wash over me. It ranks among the most-played albums of my life, yet enough time had passed since my last listen that I was able to approach it with fresher ears. Simply put, it’s an astounding collection of music, lyrics, themes, and craftsmanship that form memories in and of themselves.

    Singing    I had a long drive yesterday, a perfect opportunity to queue up this masterpiece and let it wash over me. It ranks among the most-played albums of my life, yet enough time had passed since my last listen that I was able to approach it with fresher ears. Simply put, it’s an astounding collection of music, lyrics, themes, and craftsmanship that form memories in and of themselves.

    Singing along to “Coast to Coast” reveals how gymnastic the lyrics are yet how effortlessly he delivers them.

    I played “Kings Crossing” three times in a row to bask in its calliope of storytelling and jaunty carnival organs.

    I could linger in this review with personal liner notes from each track. That’s an essay for another time. For now, it’s enough to leave with appreciation. It’s one of the great albums of my lifetime.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

11
#11 Best Album of 2004
27
#27 Most Discussed Album of 2004
27
#27 Most Shared Album of 2004

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
88

Universal acclaim - based on 37 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 37 out of 37
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 37
  3. Negative: 0 out of 37
  1. Splendid
    100
    It's simply wonderful -- bristling with pop masterpieces large and small, and reassuringly unburdened by Smith's deep-seated malaise.
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  2. Almost Cool
    65
    While it makes a lot of musical leaps (it's probably the most "experimental" work he's done), not all of them work, but there are still some great moments for fans of his work here.
    Read full review
  3. Stylus Magazine
    90
    From a Basement on the Hill is a far better album than it has any right to be, with its bizarre sequencing and improbable ambitions.
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