27 January 2024

Press photo by Alex Lake

THE SMILE featuring two radioheads – Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood – and
drummer Tom Skinner — launched their new album WALL OF EYES, only 11 months
after their compelling debut A Light For Attracting Attention.

Album artwork

Pitchfork says: “The Radiohead offshoot’s second album burrows deeper into their strangely enchanting appeal. ‘Wall of Eyes’ gives center stage to jazz, kosmische, prog—aesthetic signposts and satellite genres usually kept in the more established band’s wings. The Smile, though stranger and wilder, more comfortably fit in the omnivorous art-rock tradition.”
Full review here. Score: 8.5/10.

TUTV: With less pressure than that’s on that mega band called Radiohead, the pair
of Yorke and Greenwood seem to feel more at ease to do what they want to do without
any expectations whatsoever. Wall Of Eyes sounds less complex than the last Radiohead albums, but still echoes that band’s work here and there (Teleharmonic / Friend Of A Friend / I Quit). And Yorke‘s familair falsetto voice is omnipresent.

Then again, capricious tracks like Road The Room and Under Our Pillows resonate more direct and less polished then a lot of the multi-layered Radiohead symphonies as we know them. All that said, it really doesn’t matter if there are comparisons or not. What matters is that this record features (only) 8 paramount songs, 8 first-rate quality tunes, 8 mesmeric compositions.

Singles/Clips: Walls Of Eyes / Bending Hectic / Friend Of A Friend

– WALL OF EYES –

– BENDING HECTIC –

– FRIEND OF A FRIEND –

ALBUM

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