An eerie, if mediocre, album from the beyond

When Elliott Smith stabbed himself in the chest in the middle of recording his sixth LP, From a Basement on a Hill, something happened. Almost instantaneously the Kurt Cobain effect took hold: He became a marketing focal point, old album sales rose exponentially and quite a few people labeled him as “the most important artist of our time.” This sort of celebrity is exactly what Smith tried to avoid.

Last Tuesday, From a Basement on a Hill was released. Now, there is something inherently weird about listening to the music, especially when the album was mastered and mixed after Smith died, and even more so when several tracks feature references to suicide and death. Before listening to the album for the first time, I must admit that I was skeptical. In my opinion, after Smith was signed to Dreamworks, his music went noticeably downhill. His last two albums are nothing compared to his earlier three.

While it was released on Anti-, a division of a Epitaph, From a Basement on a Hill is uncharacteristically indie. The album begins with a bang: heavy guitar, drums and eerie vocals come together to make a musical masterpiece in “Coast to Coast.” Throughout the album, the songs range from quiet, to light-hearted and poppy, to harder and much darker, never straying from Smith’s conventional style.

Although there are some tracks that are simply fantastic, the fact remains that Smith had simply passed his prime. From a Basement on a Hill should be cherished for its sentimental meaning, but not exploited. Smith always wanted people to appreciate him solely for his music. He never wanted commercial success, and if he could see how music moguls have capitalized on his suicide, he would be sick.

So appreciate the album for what it is: an unfinished work-in-progress. It’s not ground-breaking, nor is it the best album ever produced. Just enjoy the music…. That’s what Elliott would have wanted.