Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood join again with jazz drummer Tom Skinner for a second LP of cerebrally inventive, dark tracks, tinged with ghostly melancholy, at times almost more Radiohead than Radiohead, all which makes you wonder when the next official main band LP will be, the last being eight years ago. It’s more instrumental than the first Smile LP, A Light For Attracting Attention, here eight with inventive, sophisticated jams leaping into many unexpected directions, achingly beautiful and eerie, reflecting perhaps the main pair’s many soundtrack projects. Friend Of A Friend perhaps most easily accessible and melodies, while the title track and Teleharmonic shuffle and crumble beautiful with Latinesque rhythms and orchestra, all tinged with Yorke’s distinct melancholy. Atypical time signatures, cross-rhythms and juddering, angular guitar sounds (Read The Room) and vocals, it’s both familiar and yet also new territory, less direct than the last album’s more direct protest and anger, this is oblique, abstract, impressionistic, but undoubtedly mesmeric. Perhaps the standout is the epic Bending Hectic, delicately bending strings with intricate finger-picking before building to screaming sounds and a shuddering, apocalyptic crash. Again three musicians at the very top of their game. Self Help Tapes / XL Recordings.
New to comment? It is quick and easy. You just need to login to Disqus once. All is explained in About/FAQs ...
Feel free to recommend more new albums and comment below. You can also use the contact page, or find more on social media: Song Bar Twitter, Song Bar Facebook. Song Bar YouTube, and Song Bar Instagram. Please subscribe, follow and share.
Song Bar is non-profit and is simply about sharing great music. We don’t do clickbait or advertisements. Please make any donation to help keep the Bar running: