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Elliott Smith - New Moon
I don't think anyone has ever dared compare Elliott Smith to Tupac Shakur. Surely, their styles, subject matters, genres are wholly distinct. But as Smith's former label released his second posthumous album this week,
New Moon, the only word I can think of to describe the quality of the after-death releases of Elliott Smith is "Tupacesque." And by "Tupacesque" I mean that while I listen, it is easy to forget that Smith has been dead for a
long time. Smith's Portland producer, Larry Crane, along with Kill Rock Star Records, has released a double album of 24 tracks recorded at Smith's home studio during the 3 years that Smith recorded Elliot Smith and Either/Or, the two discs that put the perpetually downtrodden singer on the map. Crane, the archivist of Smith's musical estate decided to release New Moon instead of a previously planned 2006 ten-year anniversary re-release of Either/Or. The double disc features numerous Smith tracks left off of his 6 studio albums but available on his demos and b-sides. Highlights of the new album are the countryish "Big Decision," the paranoid "Looking Over My Shoulder" and the opening track, "Angel in the Snow," a tune with Smith's trademark strumming and morose lyrics. The most interesting selection on New Moon however, is the early version of "Miss Misery," the most famous of the 5 Smith songs on the Good Will Hunting soundtrack and the only one he wrote specifically for the film. Posthumous albums are always a little bit strange. Especially when the album's author put a knife through his heart
nearly 4 years ago. I find myself looking for clues and listening not only as a music fan but as someone who is trying desperately to understand someone else's life. But Smith's catalog never gets tiresome. His lyrics about loneliness, fear and paranoia communicate a unique dark vulnerability.
For me, there are times I simply don't feel like something cheery. And at those times, there's nothing better than Elliott Smith.
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Elliott Smith - Miss Misery (Early Verson) |
Bjork
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Volta The
Icelandic vocalist is back with her first studio album since 2004's
Medulla. The highly anticipated new album features 3 tracks
produced by hip-hop producer Timbaland. This turn to hip-hop is not surprising
(nothing with Bjork is) given her tendency to mix genres from, synthetic, to African to harp
to Chinese. In fact, another collaborator on Volta
is Min Xiao Fen, a Chinese pipa player and vocalist. Bjork is
currently on tour in the U.S. in support of her new album. |
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Travis - The Boy with No Name  The
critically-acclaimed fifth studio album from the Glasgow indie rock band
is named for lead singer Fran Healy's son Clay, who wasn't named until
weeks after his birth. While Travis never turned its U.K.
popularity into international stardom, the band is often credited as a
pioneer of the Brit pop/Indie craze of the last decade. |
Maxïmo Park - Our Earthly Pleasures  The Newcastle quintet releases their second full length entitled,
Our Earthly Pleasures, in the midst of a hectic touring schedule which included a Shanghai show at 4 Live late last year. Park are among the bevy of British bands that are releasing sophomore albums after striking it big with their debut (the Futureheads, Art Brut, Bloc Party and Field Music to name a few). The retro-U.K., post-punk sound has become increasingly mainstream; it will be interesting to see which of these bands can pull away from the pack to take their music in new directions. |
Paula Abdul- Greatest Hits: Straight Up!  Straight
up, now tell me, would you ever consider buying this one? You may
get excited by the premise the way I did when I decided to include it in
this week's significant new music releases. But please, resist
your temptation. There are two reasons not to buy this: the first
is that it's her second greatest hits release of the same 20-year-old
shit. The second reason is that Paula Abdul only had one album
with any hits on it and thus, a "greatest" hits compilation CD insults
our collective intelligence. |
My dad is gonna be happy about this one. Barbra comes out with a live double disc on which she calls herself "Streisand," as if it was synonymous with "Perfect", "Timeless," or "Classic." The collection includes 31 tracks from her 2006 arena tour that broke records for ticket sales in nearly every city she visited. She's still like butter. This will be in my dad's car rotation by Friday.
The speed-rappers from Cleveland drop their seventh studio album this week. Both Jermaine Dupri and Akon produce tracks on
Strength and guest stars include Mariah Carey, The Game, Akon and Twista. Twista claims to be the fastest rapper in the world -- and he very well could be
-- so his tracks with Bone Thugs are sure to be packed with more syllables than
Ulysseys. Krayzie Bone, Layzie Bone and Wish Bone just wrapped a movie called
I Tried, a fictional tale of how their career would have progressed had they not met Eazy-E, who discovered
the group in the mid-90s. Unlike their 2003 album Thug World Order, sadly Bone Thugs does not cover any Phil Collins songs on this one.
-Small
Swords Staff
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