- 26
- Apr
It'd be tragic if Elliott Smith became indie rock's Tupac. After the initial excitement of a new, unreleased chapter had passed, From A Basement On The Hill felt alien. That won't happen with New Moon: Its two-dozen spare, achy, candlelit songs, recorded between 1994-1997, are immediately at home with vintage Kill Rock Stars Smith, the period we've always liked best (apologies XO and Figure 8 maniacs).
Respect to Larry Crane, archivist of Smith's estate, who handled and mixed the material with care—he rarely tweaks too noticeably (bumps in the night remain). It's a pristine, profoundly human sound. As anyone who saw Smith play live knows, the last thing the guy needed was polish, so it's a pleasure to listen to something as raw as the hushed midnight prayers of "Placeholder" (hear the intake of air toward the end?).