7. Thief (2000)

The exceptional Thief represents a crucial advance in a young talent’s attempts at reckoning with the extent of his powers. As a first track, “Destroyer’s The Temple” is a raising of the stakes equivalent to the Replacements’ “I Will Dare” from Let It Be, or “Girls And Boys” from Blur’s Parklife. Having gotten his first near-perfect track under his belt there is no telling how good he might become. From there we get the confectionary, rephrased “City Of Daughters,” the languid and lovely “Queen Of Languages” and the overall sense of a vital artist ready to take flight. Miracles are about to happen.