I wasn’t sure how I’d like this disc, but I’ve ended up loving
\nit.<\/p>\n
At first, I listened over and over and couldn’t quite “get it.”
\nWas it merely an airy, light pop confection or was there some guts
\nhidden in there? After repeated listens, I’d have to affirm that
\nexperiencing
\nXO<\/i> is like biting into a candy bar with a razor blade hidden
\ninside. The music seems all fluffy and sweet, but the lyrics bite
\nback with a vengeance.<\/p>\n
Smith has honed to perfection the concept of the flawless
\nthree-minute pop song, filling this disc with many numbers even
\ncoming in at 2:30 or slightly less. The songs reminded me
\nalternatively of the Beach Boys’
\nPet Sounds<\/i> to Chris Stamey’s version of the db’s pop songs.
\nSmith’s vocals alternatively have the rasp and vigor or surprising
\ntenderness of early Alex Chilton circa Big Star. Considering those
\ncomparisons, this guy has my vote for a great pop force.<\/p>\n
With his lush acoustic arrangements and heart-melting harmonies,
\nSmith has put together a collection of songs that are a vocal opus
\nto disillusioned love wrapped up in a gossamer musical package. He
\nconvincingly portrays the wide-eyed shock of a lover left in the
\ndust through his sweet vocals without being cloying. His themes
\nrange from alienation and confusion about love to simply being
\nblind about it.<\/p>\n
One moment he’s not wanting to know where his lover is because
\nhe doesn’t believe he’s “the puzzle pieces” of love’s solution.
\nNext, in the one stinging example of lyrical anger in “I Didn’t
\nUnderstand”, he alternatively laments “What a fucking joke” the
\nrelationship has become to his own self deprecation of “I always
\nfeel like shit.” Despite his rather pessimistic view of love, he
\nnever seems to fully blame his lovers for screwing things up, or
\nleast they aren’t implicated as the real reason love has failed or
\ndeserted him. Smith fairly croaks with “Oh Well OK” that he
\n“couldn’t figure out what made you so unhappy.” Apparently, the
\ncause and the blame fall mostly on his shoulders.<\/p>\n
The closing track, “I Didn’t Understand”, a musically angelic
\node to love lost, conjures:<\/p>\n
“You’ll soon be leaving me<\/p>\n
Alone like I’m suppose to be<\/p>\n
Tonight, tomorrow and everyday<\/p>\n
There’s nothing here you’ll miss.”<\/p>\n
Something tells me this is a guy with a road littered with
\nbroken love affairs or at least one very unhappy breakup that
\ninfluenced the entire album’s worth of gut-wrenching misery.<\/p>\n
My favorite tracks on the disc change daily, depending on the
\ndourness of my own emotional mood. “Sweet Adeline” has sweeping,
\nrapturous melodies, nicely augmented by some backing strings and
\nSmith’s acoustically innocent vocals. “Waltz #2,” perhaps one of
\nthe best tracks along with “Waltz #1,” showcases Smith’s ability to
\nwrite dejectedly and angrily but is contradicted through the
\nvulnerability his voice projects to the true nature of his
\nemotions. “Waltz #1” is as slippery and dreamlike as a Bach minuet
\nand most reminded me of Chris Stamey’s ballads such as “I’m In
\nLove.”<\/p>\n
My other current favorite that keeps running through my head
\nover and over is “Amity,” a song showcasing Smith’s ability to do
\nfalsetto singing as well as Chilton did on
\nRadio City<\/i> during his heyday.<\/p>\n
Smith’s absolute obsession with love’s pitfalls never gets too
\noverbearing or self-pitying . This difficult balance is
\naccomplished mostly from Smith’s ability to use his voice as an
\ninstrument which has just the right soft touch. He may be singing
\nabout dark despair but he sprinkles in those confetti-spun vocals
\nand melodies and you just can’t feel completely gloomy while giving
\nthis disc a serious listen.<\/p>\n
My only true criticism of this disc is the songs sound too much
\nalike. There is no great variance in the theme, musically or
\nemotionally, on
\nXO<\/i>. But then again, doesn’t that make his argument stronger
\nas his point seems to be there is no sense or happiness within
\nlove’s treacherous grip?<\/p>\n
My advice is to listen to this disc a lot. It’s something that
\ngrows on you slowly and blossoms with each listen. If you’ve
\nrecently broken up with someone (or wish you could), this is
\ndefinitely a well-suited tonic for the love damaged and love
\nchallenged.<\/p>\n
So, lay back, take a deep breath, and revel in this beautiful
\nand melancholic record. Somehow, Smith manages to make you feel
\nlike even though love stinks, it can still be a beautiful,
\ncathartic experience. And
\nXO<\/i> is just the vehicle to purge your dispirited romantic
\nsoul.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":24872,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"artist":[6023],"rating":[5613],"class_list":["post-36077","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-elliott-smith","rating-rating-a-minus"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/36077","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36077"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/36077\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24872"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36077"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36077"},{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=36077"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=36077"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}