Brilliant but very distressing

Review Score: (10/10)
This is Elliott Smith's best album by a long mile and sadly it's definitely the last album that he meant to release.I am sure over the coming years the archives will be plundered by vultures and we will be able to hear some of the songs that Elliott considered too poor to release in the first place.

To put it mildly, this album is a suicide note set to music.Every grievance that Elliott felt in life is here-painfully,painfully honest stuff.

Anyway, I have to say that whenever I listen to 'From A Basement On A Hill', it makes me feel very sad indeed.The lyrical content of each song is an insight in to the mind of a man who doesn't want to live any more.I find 'Shooting Star' and 'Twilight' particularly distressing because the lyrics make it clear that he was going through a very rough patch with his girlfriend and he was addicted to drugs ("I'm already someone else's baby").I honestly have cried a few times while listening to 'Twilight'.I can hear how unhappy poor Elliott was but it is of course too late now to help him...
Even the song titles are very distressing e.g. King's Crossing,A Fond Farewell etc.There is a definite pointer to suicide.
My own personal favourite song is 'Pretty(Ugly Before)'.I just love the melody, the gorgeous piano and the superb guitar solo in it.
I also love the distorted guitars and vocals on 'Coast To Coast' and 'Don't Go Down'. God bless him, he could rock out when he felt like it as well as being a brilliant acoustic guitarist.

I read an article in a British magazine recently that describes this album perfectly :
There is some doubt over whether Elliott Smith killed himself or was murdered but it's obvious from the album that he didn't want to live anymore.

God Bless Elliott Smith wherever he is.RIP.


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