Shannon Lay Shares Beautiful Take On Elliott Smith’s ‘Angeles’

Shannon Lay has shared her take on Elliott Smith’s classic ‘Angeles’.

The songwriter has decided to focus on her favourite tracks by other artists, bringing these together on a new covers project. The aptly-named ‘Covers Vol. 1’ lands on April 14th via Sub Pop, and it follows her excellent 2021 album ‘Geist’.

The incoming LP features fresh takes on work from a wide array of artists, ranging from Ty Segall to Vashti Bunyan via The Velvet Underground, Arthur Russell, and more.

Ahead of this, Shannon Lay has shared a wonderfully frosted take on Elliott Smith’s ‘Angeles’. A neat take on a key moment in Elliott Smith’s catalogue, she seems to add something new to the song while retaining the raw emotion of the original

Kai MacKnight directs the deceptively simple video, with Shannon Lay commenting:

If I had a nickel for every minute I’ve spent listening to Elliott Smith I’d be a very rich woman. His intricate thoughtfulness always fills me up. “Angeles” was one of those songs I was always quite intimidated to learn but upon finally trying it came together so naturally. Then Debbie Neigher topped things off with an amazing piano outro. I love feeling Elliott’s spirit embedded in the musical scene at large. Anywhere notes are played he lives on.

Tune in now.

Photo Credit: Kai MacKnight