Neil: "The songs felt interchangeable between his solo work and the band. It was a lot of fun conquering the limitations (drums in the dining room, guitars in the kitchen) and making a cool record." Heatmiser's other songwriter was the talented Neil Gust. I pitched Tom on the idea, and off we went. Elliott called me and said they were in a bind on the Heatmiser record. Possibly recording at my house, like we had for parts of Beck's Mellow Gold, but it didn't come together. Rob: "I know we had been talking about doing something together for a while. We held out for a year, for total control, and then went so far as to buy our own equipment. We were totally paranoid going into that deal. Heatmiser had signed to Virgin Records in 1995, and rented a house in Portland, OR, to record in, known as The Heatmiser House (SE Ankeny at 20th Ave.).Įlliott: "We got the check from Virgin, and we were on a big do-it-yourself kick. It's important to note that Mic City Sons and Either/Or not only were written close to the same time frame, but both share the co-production of Rob Schnapf and Tom Rothrock. Photo by Joanna BolmeĮlliott Smith labored over Either/Or through the years 19, while simultaneously finishing Heatmiser's Mic City Sons (the third, and last, album by the band he'd started in 1990 with Neil Gust and Tony Lash), promoting his second album (the self-titled Elliott Smith), and embarking on various solo and band tours. All quotes from Elliott are from the interview I did for Tape Op #4, as he was wrapping up the sequencing of Either/Or before the original mastering by Don Tyler at Precision Mastering in December 1996.įeature Photo: Elliott and Sam Coomes at Abbey Road, 1998. What follows is an adaptation of the liner notes, along with extra information added about the recording process and the gear Elliott, and his co-producers Rob Schnapf and Tom Rothrock, used in the making of this well-respected release. I was asked by his family and label, Kill Rock Stars, to oversee the remastering process for this record, source and mix bonus tracks, as well as to come up with text for the liner notes. 4 stars out of 5 - "EITHER/OR took the small arranging step needed to turn Smith's beautifully, harmonically sly but still then mostly self-accompanied tunes into indisputable pop.", ".an awkward sort of prettiness that fits him well.a U-turn from the aggressive, basement minimalism of his last solo record.proving himself to be an artist of uncommon dexterity and grace.", "This is an indisputable 10-star album with no peer and no real room for improvement.", 7 (out of 10) - ".ranges from low-fi sparseness to rock with a melodicism Smith's band Heatmiser has yet to match.Though the harrowing heroin tales of Smith's last album are gone, his frequent alcoholidays suggest a less outwardly tortured Mark Eitzel.", Ranked #24 in Mojo's "100 Modern Classics" - "Characteristically double-tracked vocals whispered into the listener's head, revealing the confessions of a man struggling to escape an undisclosed past.", Ranked #20 in the Village Voice's 1997 Pazz & Jop Critics' Poll., "As is true of all great songwriters who write from a personal place, to love Elliott Smith’s music is to relate to him.It’s even truer now that he’s gone.", "This is the sound of Smith conjuring something far bigger than himself and coming into his own as a songwriter, arranger, and performer.", Ranked #73 in Spin Magazine's "90 Greatest Albums of the '90s.", 4 stars out of 5 - "Dark surrealism with a wispy, half-there voice and an always surprising chorus.", ".Very frequently on EITHER/OR Elliott Smith.leaves you in awe at his quiet power.This year marks the 20th anniversary of Either/Or, the third album by my late friend and co-conspirator Elliott Smith.