XO
Elliott Smith
Dreamworks,
1998
Reviewed by
Ben French
Before you actually take a close listen to Elliott Smith, it's hard to
believe everything said about him is true. Listeners (naturally) bring up names like
Lennon and McCartney when trying to describe his soft-flowing vocals and infectious
melodies. So you listen to one or two of his songs, and you plaintively say, "Okay.
This guy sounds like the Beatles."
But to any music lover, Smith's reputation - if only compared to the Beatles - is pretty
hard to swallow. The first few times I listened to this album, I couldn't get past any of
my preconceptions. I guess I just wanted to block out the appeal of his songs after
"Miss Misery," his song in "Good Will Hunting," was nominated for an
Oscar and every writer in America was spewing praise.
One Saturday afternoon, with shitty weather keeping me inside, I tried to take a nap with
XO playing in the background. I think it took me a while to admit to myself that I
liked it - simply because it was just too easy to like. You have to understand:
It's hard for me to get into the 3/4 sing-song feel of a tune like "Waltz #2,"
the singer's enigmatic and highly enjoyable reflection on his relationship with Mom. And
its counterpart, "Waltz #1" kind of left me with a "Dead Poets
Society" feeling in the back of my brain as I lay listening to it. But by the end of
both songs, I was convinced there was more to this fella than I originally lended credit.
A few more listens were all it took to realize Smith has a gift most of his peers do not
now nor will ever possess. He can pull off the pacing of Brian Wilson (during the legend's
post-nervous breakdown era) on "Oh Well, Okay," far better than, say, Jeff
Tweedy on a handful of Beach Boys rip offs on Wilco's last album. The piano-driven pop
treat "Baby Britain" puts Smith ahead of Ben Folds at his best moments and the
chord progression on "Everybody Cares, Everybody Understands," proves the Smith
is a more educated guitarist than Dave Matthews could ever be. The album's final song, the
multi-part a cappella "I Didn't Understand," which could easily be considered a
little forced or pretentious on first sampling, reveals itself to be one of the finest
displays of pop smarts/ability in recent memory.
I'm not saying I'm totally convinced Elliott Smith is the second coming of Paul McCartney
or Brian Wilson. But I can say I really enjoy this album, and continue to enjoy
it more each time I listen to it. Furthermore, I'm quite anxious to see if this obviously
talented, still fairly young, songwriter continues to blossom into an artist without
comparison.
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"XO is
a cup of perfect pop, sweetened with great hooks and memorable melodies. "
Jonathan Cohen
- NATN Associate Editor
Related Links
Elliott Smith Homepage
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