Cutouts
Given that it evolved from an urge to do something—anything—creative during the pandemic, The Smile has turned out to be one of the most liberating and fruitful projects of Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood’s latter-day career. *Cutouts* is the third record in little more than two years from the trio, which also includes Sons of Kemet drummer Tom Skinner, and follows just 10 months after their captivating second album *Wall of Eyes*. Its creation mirrors the cross-pollination that occurred between a pair of classic Radiohead albums. In much the same way that 2000’s *Kid A* and 2001’s *Amnesiac* were made during the same recording sessions but inhabited different sonic spaces and textures, *Cutouts* contains songs committed to tape at the same time as *Wall of Eyes* in Oxford and London’s Abbey Road Studios with producer Sam Petts-Davies. Whereas *Wall of Eyes* mesmerized with a tightly wound, autumnal restraint, there’s an unfurling expanse at work on *Cutouts*’ 10 tracks. With its cascading riffs, soulful piano chords, and yearning vocals, “Eyes & Mouth” is the epic center around which everything else revolves. The record never settles in one spot for too long: “Instant Psalm,” featuring beatific strings from the London Contemporary Orchestra, is a hazy folk gem, and “The Slip” is a synth-laden banger, while the frantic punk-funk grooves of “Zero Sum” sound like they’re trying to wriggle out of themselves. It remains to be seen whether anything can be read into the trio clearing the decks with this collection of songs, some of which were played live around the time of their 2022 debut *A Light for Attracting Attention* (or in some cases, even deeper into the past—the title of contemplative closer “Bodies Laughing” can be traced back to Radiohead rehearsals in the mid-2000s). But if *Cutouts* is the end of an era for The Smile, it caps off a prolific, potent period for Yorke, Greenwood, and Skinner.
Radiohead side project The Smile return with new album ‘Cutouts’ and seem to be having more fun than ever – read the review
The Smile’s second album this year sees Thom York, Jonny Greenwood and Tom Skinner get under the skin of contemporary malaise - and, yknow, play some good riffs
More of the same might seem a tad obvious a statement to make, but it’s just about the most accurate.
Who needs a Radiohead ‘reunion’ when the band’s side projects are as fruitful as this?
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You know what, Thom Yorke has cheered up lately, hasn’t he? Back in the day, in Radiohead, he was such a grouchy sod. Now he’s making genuinely ecstatic
The trio’s second album this year is full of foreboding but the drumming of Sons of Kemet’s Tom Skinner continues to provide a different dynamic
Like the Smile’s past albums, ‘Cutouts’ maintains a healthy balance between its numerous styles.
Cutouts by The Smile album review by Tuhin Chakrabarti. The trio's LP drops on October 4th via XL Recordings and DSPs
Yorke’s elegantly ageing voice, impeccable musicianship and a bona-fide classic track make for another fine outing
The trio's third album lacks the verve and intensity of 'Wall of Eyes'. Album New Music review by Graham Fuller