The Smile: Thom Yorke’s New Band To Release Highly Anticipated Full-Length Album

The Smile will release their highly anticipated debut album A Light For Attracting Attention on May 13, 2022 on XL Recordings. 

The 13-track album was produced and mixed by Nigel Godrich and mastered by Bob Ludwig. Tracks feature strings by the London Contemporary Orchestra and a full brass section of contemporary UK jazz players including Byron Wallen, Theon and Nathaniel Cross, Chelsea Carmichael, Robert Stillman and Jason Yarde.

The Smile, comprising Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood and Sons of Kemet’s Tom Skinner, have previously released the singles You Will Never Work in Television Again, The Smoke, and  Skrting On The Surface to critical acclaim. 

The Smoke was also released as a dub remix by legendary reggae producer Dennis Bovell.

The Smile’s most recent single Pana-vision was released on April 3rd and appeared in the finale of Peaky Blinders. The animated video for Pana-vision features artwork by Radiohead artist Stanley Donwood and Thom Yorke and can be seen here.

The brand new single Free In The Knowledge is out today, April 20th, with an accompanying video directed by Leo Leigh. The track was first performed by Thom Yorke as part of the Letters Live event at London’s Royal Albert Hall, in December 2021, the first time Thom had performed since the pandemic began. Introducing the song, he dedicated it to all fellow UK musicians.

Watch Free In The Knowledge HERE

In January The Smile played three consecutive sold-out live shows over a 24- hour period in London. These shows were simultaneously livestreamed to a worldwide audience. 

The band begin their 2022 European tour on May 16th in Croatia, and will be performing UK dates in London, Edinburgh, and Manchester, before heading back into Europe, with a final performance in Taormina, Sicily, on July 20th.

The dates include a performance at Down The Rabbit Hole festival in the Netherlands on July 2nd and the Montreux Jazz Festival on July 20th.

A Light For Attracting Attention will be released by XL Recordings on digital May 13th and on CD and vinyl formats June 17th.