Either / Or

Product Information

It's no secret that Smith dealt with alcoholism and addiction, but through his music you can see that he was able to experience love as well. Every record is shipped in original factory-applied shrink wrap and has never been touched by human hands. It's the ideal bridge between the skeletal sparseness of his early work and the lush studio orchestration of his later stuff, which is a touch over-produced for me.

The last LP he released with independent label Kill Rock Stars, the record saw an expansion in Smith’s sound, while retaining the raw, often desolate emotional heft with which he’d become synonymous.With distinct production, instrumentation, and vocals, the recordings found on Alternate Versions offer a new perspective on one of Smith’s most highly acclaimed albums, and separate them from the original cuts found on Either/Or. I thought it was a gatefold with inner sleeves including lyrics, but it came with white sleeves and no gatefold.

Secondary copies sent out will be opened and inspected before being re-shipped to guarantee a non defective replacement. To commemorate the 20th Anniversary of this masterpiece, Kill Rock Stars proudly presents Either/Or: Expanded Edition. Through its dozen tracks, the album oscillates between harmony and dissonance, sentiment and cynicism, culminating in a record that is unmistakably and unabashedly “Elliott Smith”. The result is this remaster of the original plus a bonus disc of unreleased live tracks, three unreleased songs and a number of curiosities. The melodies and harmonies on here are achingly lovely, the vocals so hushed and fragile they're almost whispered, and the lyrics unrelentingly, heartbreakingly sad.

Following the album's release, Smith would be struck to the forefront of popular culture after performing the song "Miss Misery", which appeared in the film Good Will Hunting, at the 1998 Academy Awards. In terms of the remastering comparing with older versions, it doesn't really sound that revolutionary.