THE SMILE Vinyl & CDs

Review: The Smile's latest remix compendium is a striking one, with two eminent producers reimagining tracks from the British rock band/Radiohead offshoot's latest and third album, CUTOUTS. This remix-set takes the core of the band's genre-blend sound, from art rock to experimental electronica, and contorts it into yet another division of volatile allotropes, this time welcoming light show IDM extravaganzist James Holden and East Kent musician Robert Stillman. Both versions are full displays of productive talent, humanisti, but still cognitively vector-mapped out in digi-space ahead of time, mirroring the abstracted, rather listless and amoral lyrics heard in the title track ("And your force means nothing...")

Review: The Smile's Wall of Eyes is a triumph in atmospheric experimentation, bridging the delicate intensity of Radiohead's later works with a more abstract, avant-garde edge. The album is filled with a sense of mystery, its drifting, formless compositions creating a pervasive feeling of unease. Opener 'Wall of Eyes' beckons with eerie folk textures and art-pop flourishes, setting the tone for the record's dark beauty. Bending Hectic' stands as the album's crowning achievement, its near-ambient build-up exploding into a cathartic, thunderous conclusion, balancing beauty and chaos. Elsewhere, 'Read the Room' and 'I Quit' bring rhythmic complexity, adding layers of groove and intricacy. Thom Yorke's vocals, as always, are haunting, tying the record together with familiar yet fresh emotional depth. Wall of Eyes confidently charts its own path, a significant step forward from A Light for Attracting Attention, cementing The Smile as more than a side project, but a vital voice in today's alt-rock landscape.

Review: The Smile's Cutouts marks another step in the band's exploration of diverse sonic landscapes. Following their earlier 2024 album Wall of Eyes, this project further underscores the trio's commitment to musical experimentation. Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead and drummer Tom Skinner crafted Cutouts at Oxford and Abbey Road Studios, with Sam Petts-Davies producing. They offer a look into the album's eclectic mix of styles, blending elements of jazz, Krautrock and progressive rock,a blend of influences delivered with a raw, adventurous energy that distinguishes The Smile from their Radiohead roots. Cutouts is expected to unify these varied influences into a compelling sonic experience.

Review: Cutouts continues the three strong supergroup's exploration of diverse sonic landscapes, the new ten-track project reaffirming The Smile's commitment to pushing musical boundaries. The trioicomprised of Radiohead's Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood alongside drummer Tom Skinnericrafted Cutouts in Oxford and Abbey Road Studios, with production by Sam Petts-Davies. Preceded by the singles 'Foreign Spies' and 'Zero Sum,' the album promises a blend of styles, from jazz and Krautrock to progressive rock, all while maintaining a raw, experimental edge distinct from their work with Radiohead. The Smile have already captivated audiences with these tracks during their recent UK and European tours and as with their previous releases, Cutouts merges complex musical influences into a cohesive and intriguing sonic experience.

Review: Given their Radiohead connections Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood make up two thirds of the band), there's always been an enormous amount of interest in The Smile - a lockdown-born project that has plenty of potential. Wall of Eyes, the trio's second album, is certainly impressive. For proof, check the moody, suspenseful and slowly unfurling title track (all pulsing, low-slung semi-acoustic grooves, eyes-closed vocals, dense electronic textures and soundtrack strings), the heady, subtly jazz-flecked wall of sound that is 'Friend of a Friend' (listen out for the music concrete-style sound collage sitting in the background of the White Album era Beatles-esque 'Friend of a Friend'), and the lo-fi, string-laden headiness of the largely beat-free 'Bending Heretic', whose cut-glass horror strings and Nine Inch Nails style guitars are impressively intense at times.

Review: The Smile's new album Wall Of Eyes, set to be released on on XL Recordings and the alternative moniker of Radiohead members Jonny Greenwood, Thom Yorke and drummer Tom Skinnner. It was recorded between Oxford and Abbey Road Studios, and is produced and mixed Sam Petts-Davies. It features string arrangements by the London Contemporary Orchestra. Wall Of Eyes is the follow up their 2022 debut LP A Light For Attracting Attention.

Review: Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood and Tom Skinner (Sons Of Kemet) finally deliver on their much-hyped The Smile project, blending the anxious and synaptic tones of Radiohead's anthemic indie-electro with the bluer party tones of UK jazz. The new album features a slew of tracks with swelling strings recorded by the full brass section of the London Contemporary Orchestra, as well as a band of jazz players like Theon and Nathaniel Cross and Robert Stillman.

Review: The Smile is a new project from Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood, which finds the Radiohead vets teaming up with Sons Of Kemet's Tom Skinner. The first the world caught wind of the band was during the live broadcast from the Glastonbury site in 2021, and since they've been trickling out tracks which now form their debut album, A Light For Attracting Attention. It's been produced by Radiohead's long time go-to guy Nigel Godrich, and it features a full brass section including the likes of Theon and Nathaniel Cross amongst others. Of course you can hear slithers of the 'Head in there, but it's also fascinating to hear Yorke and Greenwood stretching out in a different project without all the years of legacy behind them. The results are, predictably, magic.