I was first introduced to Elliott Smith by a friend of mine who worked at a record store in Helsinki. He made m a mix tape of some of his favourite new artists back in 2001 and Elliott Smith was among them. There are quite a few bands that have stayed with me from that tape, but I feel like Elliott Smith was the biggest revelation that changed my whole world. Around the time I was mostly listening to 70's hard rock, glam rock and similar older stuff, but this tape changed everything and I started listening to indie singer-songwriters writing melodic and melancholic songs. Elliott Smith not only made music that really moved me, but I could also really channel my own emotions through his lyrics, which was completely new to me, because I usually didn't any attention to lyrics. I can't really say I have ever lived as sad life as Elliott Smith, but something in the quite direct way of talking about his emotions allowed me to reflect my own emotions through his music. I can still remember moments of heartbreak through his songs. If anything, his music is a diary to my early adulthood. I don't think I can ever feel as much when listening to music as I did back then.
The album starts with the song Son of Sam that talks about a serial killer. I don't know why so many of my favourite artists have written a song about a serial killer (Sufjan Stevens' John Wayne Gacy Jr.). I love the bouncy piano in this song and the whole rock sounds of the song really resonated me at the time more than the folky songs of his that I've only grown to love later on. Somebody That I Used to Know shows the more traditional acoustic side of Elliott Smith. the acoustic guitar sounds fantastic in this song and the solos played over the picking are just brilliant. Junk Bond Trader has never been one of my favourite songs from the album, but I do like the electric guitars and Smith's trademark doubled vocals. Everything Reminds Me of Her is a really beautiful song and I remember weeping to this song at least in a few occasion when I've had difficult moments in my life. Even if the song is really sad, something in the sounds gives me hope at a time of despair. Everything Means Nothing to Me is one of the most beautiful songs on this album. The piano is amazing and I love the melody that is very surprising, but still catchy. L.A. represents the kinds of songs in Smith's repertoire that I've never liked as much. In a way it's not fair, because for any artist, this would be a fantastic song, but for Elliott Smith, this is below average. In the Lost and Found (Honky Bach) is a strange saloon piano song that I didn't like at all when I first started listening to this album, but I've grown to love the quite mad approach of it. Stupidity Tries is a great song that beautifully combines the quiet folk song with electronic instruments and power chords. Easy Way Out is one of my favourite songs from the album. The picked guitar is amazing and the melancholic melody is superbly beautiful. Wouldn't Mama Be Proud is also one of the best songs on the album. The chorus is really catchy and I really love singing along to this song. Ever since I started listening to Elliott Smith, I wanted to be able to sing like him. Color Bars has beautiful interplay between the piano and a guitar. There's something quite sunny in this song even if the undertone is quite melancholic. Happiness, ironically, isn't a very happy song. It's a fantastically composed pop song. Pretty Mary K has one of the strangest chord progressions of any Elliott Smith song. I really adore his ability to make approachable, yet really strange melodies. I truly love I Better Be Quiet Now. The acoustic guitars are just perfect and there's lots of room for Smith's beautiful voice. Can't Make a Sound continues in a very similar vein, but the song gets louder towards the end. The album ends in a strange psychedelic piano sequence called Bye.
The music video for Son of Sam starts with showing mostly black and white still photos of Elliott Smith waling the streets of L.A. in a style of candid photographs of a crime investigator. As the story goes on, Elliott is running after a red balloon in the streets and is being photographed on the way. He finally catches it as it breaks by the wall that appears in the cover of the album. If I ever visit LA, I really need to visit this wall. Apparently after Smith's death, this wall was turned into a shrine with fans writing messages about their love for him.
When Elliott Smith died, I read it in the newspaper while working in a cafe in Helsinki, listening to his music as I read it. It has stayed a stopping moment in my life. Not many people in Finland new even who Elliott Smith was, but I was at the height of my fandom to him at the time and it was a big deal to me when this happened. It felt quite strange to be so sad over someone I didn't know personally, but just the thought of not getting more of his amazing music was really sad. Figure 8 was his last album that was released while he was alive, but there has been a couple of albums of material released after his death. Still, I feel like they were never as amazing as what he had released before. Even though I don't listen to Elliott Smith all the time anymore, he's a kind of artist who I return to over and over again and whenever I do, I always fall in love with his music again and again.
Listen to the album on Spotify.
Listen to the album on Spotify.
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