Elliott Smith

From A Basement On The Hill

A fond farewell

Review Score:

(10/10)
Noone can dispute that Smith did not get to finish the mixes or pick the track selection, after all he died, with the album uncompleted , but that's the nature of all posthumous recordings: they're never quite what the artist intended. Critics, fans, can argue endlessy about the songs on From a Basement on the Hill .and how it would have sounded if Smith had finished the record, but that doesn't take away from the simple fact that the music here is strong enough to warrant the release, and that gives us a sense of closeur to his discography.

While it's likely that From a Basement is cleaner than what Smith would have liked, it is much sparer than Figure 8, and it feels at once more adventurous, confident, and warmer than its predecessor. And its definitely not "the next White Album," which is what Smith was always striving for, but it has a similarly freewheeling spirit. It's not far removed from any of Smith's previous works, but it feels like a step away from the careful Figure 8 and more personal than XO. The most surprising thing is that despite the lyrics that seem to foretell his suicide ,it's not a dark heavy album. Like the best of his music, From a Basement on the Hill is warm in its sadness. Given Smith's tragic fate, it also sadly seems like a summation of his work. All of his trademarks are here his soft, sad voice, his addiction to '60s pop, what Elliot left us are a strong set of songs that stands among his best. It may or may not be the album that he intended , but as it stands, From a Basement on the Hill is a fond farewell to a singer/songwriter who many considered a friend.

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