Review: Elliott Smith

Review: Elliott Smith

Elliott Smith 'New Moon': Aidin Vaziri | Elliott Smith's second release from beyond the grave is a whopper -- a double-disc set loaded with demos, outtakes and studio scraps recorded in the prime years stretching from 1994 to '97. Because most of the stuff is so poorly produced, with just a voice and acoustic guitar, it won't make any sense to newcomers. Because it doesn't include every burp and gurgle, hard-core fans will moan that it's incomplete. Who cares? It's a chance to spend some quality time in the company of one the most delicate and brutal songwriters we've ever known as he explores every crevice of his damaged psyche in minor masterpieces like "New Disaster" and "Going Nowhere." We won't see the likes of him again anytime soon.