In addition to these rare recordings, the double LP will also include an insert of the original liner notes, a postcard of the original master tapes, and several never-before seen photos. Treading upon the familiar themes of failure, pain and addiction, no one could have anticipated much of the album would end up on the hit movie, Good Will Hunting.Īfter catching the attention of director Gus Van Sant, Smith was also asked to write an original song, resulting in ‘Miss Misery’ and an Oscar nom for Best Original Song. He put the time in, writing and recording so many songs that didn’t make the cut”.Įither/Or marks an important commercial turning point in Smith’s career. While a commemorative project was in the works to celebrate the album’s 10th anniversary, Crane – a friend and recording engineer who worked with Smith – unearthed so much good material the estate ended up releasing many of the bonus tracks on the posthumous collection New Moon in 2007.Īs Crane told the New York Times, “The bonus tracks would have swamped the album. In addition to the remastered tracks, it will also include three previously unreleased studio recordings and the unreleased demo ‘I Figured You Out’, a cut Smith originally wrote and recorded as a demo for singer Mary Lou Lord in 1995. We're thrilled to offer the Bandbox exclusive edition of Either/Or on translucent orange vinyl! It comes with a 16-page, full-color Elliott Smith zine featuring a career retrospective and rare photos.The double-album features the original tracks carefully remastered from original tapes under the supervision of Larry Crane while the second disc features five live multi-track recordings from the Yo Yo A Go Go Festival in Olympia, WA in 1997. Over two decades on, Either/Or is every bit the masterstroke it was when he gifted it to the world on that cold winter’s day.
Maybe Elliott Smith never figured out how to adapt to life after Either/Or. In a 2017 interview with the New York Times, recording engineer Larry Crane noted that his collaborator’s appearance at the 1998 Academy Awards was “kind of when we lost him.” “He wasn’t our little Elliott treasure anymore,” he bemoaned. Acclaimed director Gus Van Sant was so enamored with the LP that he not only included a few of its gems in Good Will Hunting, but he also commissioned Smith to write the one-off song that would send his name, voice and image into the celebrity stratosphere - “Miss Misery.” That’s when the major labels came knocking, leading to the fantastic follow-up, XO, being released on DreamWorks in 1998. There’s absolutely no disputing this album provided the former Heatmiser frontman with the most pivotal moments for his career. Indeed, Either/Or was a big deal before the new millennium eventually gave way to Smith’s final days. More recently, Rolling Stone named Either/Or the 216th greatest record of all-time, praising its “low-fi whisper and gritty, sepia-toned lyrics.” “It’s dreamy and extreme,” said NME’s Stuart Baillie at the time. “The Portland singer-songwriter's tunes are luminously orchestrated within a fragile framework of voices, guitars and percussion,” wrote Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune upon the album’s release. His double-tracked vocals lend a hauntingly harmonic atmosphere to “2:45 AM” and “Angeles,” while a delicate sweetness pervades finale “Say Yes.” Despite Smith’s simplistic reputation as a wordy folkie, there’s plenty for six-string slingers to appreciate - like the radio-friendly “Cupid’s Tale” or the crawling, understated “Alameda.” Either/Or is a marked step up in musical craftsmanship from 1994’s Roman Candle and 1995’s Elliott Smith, both incredible records in their own right. It’s worth noting, though, that Smith’s third solo effort was treasured by critics and fans from the moment it was unveiled in February ‘97.įor good reason. As is often the case with great works by artists taken from us at a young age, the songwriter’s final record for seminal PNW indie label Kill Rock Stars has seen its cultural appreciation grow tenfold in the 17 years since his passing. It's understandable to now view Elliott Smith's 1997 breakthrough LP, Either/Or, through a tragic filter.