A Double LP Of "XO" Does A Tremendous Disservice To Elliott Smith

limited to 4000 numbered copies—part of Interscope Vinyl Collective subscription series

Elliott Smith’s 1998 major label debut, XO, isn’t as vibey as its predecessor, 1997’s Either/Or. Nor is it as laser-focused as its follow-up, 2000’s Figure 8 — the Sgt. Pepper... to XO’s Revolver.

Still, XO is special. It captured a crucial creative flowering for the late Smith, where an artist known for lo-fi hyper-intimacy strolled into a succession of L.A. studios with a head full of new sounds, and the confidence to let them loose. And a large handful of its songs — “Tomorrow Tomorrow,” “Independence Day,” “Bottle Up and Explode!,” “I Didn’t Understand,” both Waltzes — rank among his very finest offerings.

Sure, it’s got a turkey or two. (The hamfisted rocker “Amity,” anyone?) Still, XO is a critical Smith release, and remains widely beloved for very good reasons. As such, it behooves his estate, and the big labels, to thoughtfully preserve it, with the rest of his discography. Has the Interscope Vinyl Collective lived up to their duty with their new, deluxe XO, with a second platter of bonus tracks? Well… it’s complicated.

On one hand, the casual vinyl consumer may throw on this XO and never think twice. And if, for any reason, this is your preferred gateway to Smith’s universe, go nuts — I’m not in the business of blocking you from beauty. On the other hand, this is Tracking Angle. So I decided to bomb out to Wyckoff, New Jersey, and compare it to an original Bong Load pressing, via editor-in-chief Michael Fremer’s trillion-dollar system.

Even as the most casual of audiophiles — I just like when music sounds good — it was like night and day. And as a lifelong Smith fan, I was honestly shocked.

The pensive acoustic guitars in opener “Sweet Adeline” are supposed to lull you before the giant crashing chorus; from jump, an unpleasant toppiness and flatness kills the buzz. And that chorus, with its deliciously huge drum and piano sound? They perversely make everything smaller. The woozy, ethereal “Tomorrow Tomorrow” is supposed to crest like daybreak. It just felt like the sun was in my eyes.

With much of their space and dynamics vacuumed out, it’s harder to feel these songs, to connect with an artist who invites the deepest, most intimate communion. Which led to a stomach-dropping realization: the cutting engineer — unnamed in the liner notes — took an album that already suffers from dated over-compression, and compressed it even further. This does a grave disservice to a prodigious and very-missed talent, and begs the question of exactly what the hell happened.

If Side B sounded like Side A, maybe I’d give this pressing a 2. (I turned off “Waltz #2,” one of his most important songs.) Thankfully, through some momentary flicker of wisdom, Side B goes easier on the compression.

Still, something was off with the heartsick, heavenly “Waltz #1”: that booming bass drum lacked the 1998 pressing’s depth and resonance, and the scooped-out space in the vocal arrangements remained troubling. Speaking of: a capella closer “I Didn’t Understand” was the perfect litmus test for this space issue. Instead of emanating from distinct zones in the soundfield, Smith’s vocal parts blare at you as a near-monolith.

A brief note on the bonus tracks, which appear on the previously released DSP version of XO (Deluxe Edition). They probably won’t ensnare a passing listener, but for fans, they amount to a smattering of solid gold.

After the rudimentary instrumental “Our Thing,” we get two fanged, power-pop outtakes: “How to Take a Fall” and “The Enemy is You.” An embryonic, shitty-sounding “Waltz #1” won’t stick to the ribs, but the alternate version of “Some Song” (the B-side of the Either/Or single “Ballad of Big Nothing”) and an early, mellotron-bathed version of “Bottle Up and Explode!” will certainly get more spins. After a remix of “Baby Britain” — of unknown, unaddressed origin — as well as a contemporaneous, slapdash-seeming radio edit of “Waltz #2,” the program concludes with “Miss Misery.” (For the uninitiated: the non-album single was featured in 1997’s "Good Will Hunting"; it lost “Best Original Song” at the Oscars the following year to “My Heart Will Go On” written by James Horner and Will Jennings sung by Celine Dion, and Smith famously performed it on the telecast in an ill-fitting white suit).

I hadn’t heard many of these tracks; I’m glad they’re in my life now. But as the vinyl goes: what a drag. Whoever did this to Smith, it’s troubling that more time or effort wasn’t expended, given he’s not here to defend his work. And all things considered, this leap from digital to vinyl comes off as a cash grab.

Stream XO. Grab an original pressing. Grab a CD version — preferably later than 1998, as the tech improved. But this is no way to listen to an indispensable album. As Smith sang early on in XO, “The noise is coming out, and if it’s not out now/ Then tomorrow, tomorrow.” Guess we’ll wait ‘til they give it another shot: for now, what a sorely missed opportunity.