The Smile is a weirder version of Radiohead, if that’s even possible

Jonny Greenwood was dealing with the pandemic in his own way by writing riffs on his guitar, and Thom Yorke was eager to do some recording. So the two Radiohead members dreamed up a new project called The Smile, and enlisted Sons of Kemet drummer Tom Skinner to join them.

The newly formed three-piece along with longtime Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich got to work, and after a handful of performances, we arrive at the debut from The Smile, A Light for Attracting Attention. It’s a weirder version of Radiohead, if there could be such a thing, loaded with jazz and post-punk influences.

In this session, The Smile share an exclusive mini-concert recorded at the Montreux Jazz Festival in July 2022. You could call it a mega-mini-concert, as we’re going to feature eight songs from the trio, which showcases some of the best players in the world.