From a Basement on the Hill is the sixth and final studio album by the late singer-songwriter Elliott Smith. It was released posthumously on CD on October 19, 2004, through record label ANTI-.
The album was incomplete at the time of Smith's death. Smith's family hired his former producer Rob Schnapf and ex-girlfriend Joanna Bolme to sort through and put the finishing touches on the batch of over thirty songs that were recorded for the album. The album was initially planned as a double CD album, due to contractual obligations with the DreamWorks label (now Interscope). Thus, a fifteen-track album was assembled and released. Many of the songs Smith intended for the album remained unfinished, in some cases only lacking vocals. Metacritic gave the album an 88 (universal acclaim). This score reflects one of the fifty best-reviewed albums in the website's database.
The Album peaked at No. 19 in the US and No. 41 in the UK.From a Basement on the Hill is the sixth and final studio album by the late singer-songwriter Elliott Smith. It was released posthumously on CD on October 19, 2004, through record label ANTI-.
The album was incomplete at the time of Smith's death. Smith's family hired his former producer Rob Schnapf and ex-girlfriend Joanna Bolme to sort through and put the finishing touches on the batch of over thirty songs that were recorded for the album. The album was initially planned as a double CD album, due to contractual obligations with the DreamWorks label (now Interscope). Thus, a fifteen-track album was assembled and released. Many of the songs Smith intended for the album remained unfinished, in some cases only lacking vocals. Metacritic gave the album an 88 (universal acclaim). This score reflects one of the fifty best-reviewed albums in the website's database.
The Album peaked at No. 19 in the US and No. 41 in the UK.false2025-11-08 07:27:07From a Basement on the Hill20042004-10-182004-10-1858Indie Rock115895213921788ba92e5-5de3-4ff2-a9fc-5016fed6af4003ad1736-b7c9-412a-b442-82536d63a5c473c74665-e920-3bf1-bfcf-27d2fd7b9c09/media/data/media4/Music/Elliott Smith/From a Basement on the Hill/folder.jpgElliott SmithElliott SmithSteven Paul Smith (August 6, 1969 – October 21, 2003), known professionally as Elliott Smith, was an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska, raised primarily in Texas, and lived much of his life in Portland, Oregon, where he first gained popularity. Smith's primary instrument was the guitar, though he also played piano, clarinet, bass guitar, drums, and harmonica. Smith had a distinctive vocal style, characterized by his "whispery, spiderweb-thin delivery", and often used multi-tracking to create vocal layers, textures, and harmonies.
After playing in the rock band Heatmiser for several years, Smith began his solo career in 1994, with releases on the independent record labels Cavity Search and Kill Rock Stars (KRS). In 1997, he signed a contract with DreamWorks Records, for which he recorded two albums. Smith rose to mainstream prominence when his song "Miss Misery"—included in the soundtrack for the film Good Will Hunting (1997)—was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Original Song category in 1998.Smith was a heavy drinker and drug user at times throughout his life, and was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and depression. His struggles with drugs and mental illness affected his life and work, and often appeared in his lyrics. In 2003, aged 34, he died in Los Angeles, California, from two stab wounds to the chest. The autopsy evidence was inconclusive as to whether the wounds were self-inflicted or the result of homicide. At the time of his death, Smith was working on his sixth studio album, From a Basement on the Hill, which was posthumously produced and released in 2004.