Summary Elliott Smith Interview - How important is the internet to you? - YouTube (Youtube) www.youtube.com
1,212 words - YouTube video - View YouTube video
One Line
Elliott Smith discusses his process of song selection, the difficulty of choosing the order of songs on an album, his indifference towards expensive records and radio airplay, his focus on music over media attention, his lack of a specific vision for his music's future, the relatability of combining different emotions in a song, his control over the creative aspects of his music but not the business side, and his appreciation for the internet as a means of distributing information.
Slides
Slide Presentation (9 slides)
Key Points
- Elliott Smith recorded around 25 songs for his album but only included the ones that sounded best together.
- He doesn't think much about radio airplay or media attention, but it's nice to hear his song on the radio.
- Music is the most important thing to Elliott Smith, not fame or success.
- He considers himself lucky to be able to do what he loves and doesn't attribute it to his own talent.
- He likes to combine different emotions, preferably conflicting ones, in his songs.
- Elliott Smith is in control of how his music sounds and the artwork, but not the business side of things.
- He thinks the internet is great and hopes it doesn't become too regulated, as it provides a new way of distributing information.
Summary
212 word summary
Elliott Smith discusses the process of selecting songs for his albums, mentioning that many songs are suppressed because he doesn't find them interesting. He also talks about the difficulty of choosing the right order for the songs on an album. When asked about recording with an unlimited budget, Smith expresses that he takes advantage of available technology but doesn't see much difference between expensive and less expensive records. He also mentions that he is not interested in polishing his songs for radio airplay. Smith admits that he doesn't think much about radio airplay or media attention and emphasizes that music is what's important to him. He mentions that he doesn't want to get bitter and considers himself lucky to be able to do what he loves. Smith doesn't have a specific vision for his music's future and enjoys creating music without thinking too much about where it will go. He believes that combining different emotions in a song is more relatable to people. In terms of control, Smith mentions that he has control over the creative aspects of his music but not the business side. He expresses his appreciation for the internet as a new technology for distributing information and hopes it won't be regulated by those with a lot of money.