Last year, Nell Smith tragically passed away at 17 in a car accident. The Canadian teenage music prodigy made a name for herself with Flaming Lips collaborations and had been getting ready to unveil her debut album. Today, her label Bella Union has announced the posthumous release of Anxious.
“It is still very painful when I realize Nell is gone,” the Flaming Lips' Wayne Coyne says, continuing:
I keep thinking I’ll check my text messages from her. I’m sure she has a new drawing or new piece of a song or a new photo of her cat… and then I remember she is gone. Now when I’m listening to her singing these songs there is a brief fantastical joy. Her voice hits the ear, the ear tells brain this is the sound of love, the brain lets the mind fly through the billions of connections it has with Nell’s life... but as it flies it also flies to her death... there is something holy that happens now.
The title track and opener is out now. Smith had been helped by Jack and Lily Wolter of Penelope Isles, and some of the songs had been in the works since she was 12. "Anxious" is a special balance of childlike and mature, light and dark. In addition to the album announcement, her family has announced the Nell Smith Memorial Fund, which aims to raise $100,000 to award $10,000 to an emerging artist every year. Find more information about that here, and watch the "Anxious" music video below.
TRACKLIST:
01 "Anxious"
02 "Daisy Fields"
03 "Bubba"
04 "The Worst Best Drug"
05 "Service Song"
06 "Boy In A Bubble"
07 "Splash"
08 "I Know Nothing"
09 "Billions Of People"
10 "Split In The Sky"
Anxious is out 4/11 via Bella Union. Pre-order it here.
