A Light For Attracting Attention - The Smile (2022)

Ideated from: ending the year with some of my favorites of 2022 that I hadn’t written up yet.

New Radiohead-adjacent music is always welcome in my mind. Well, mostly. Yorke’s solo projects sometimes slip up and make it a little too obvious to politely ignore that he’s an extraterrestrial in a human suit. But for the most part, I love it when any combination of the lads do something on record.

This is Yorke along with guitarist / composer / mad scientist Johnny Greenwood and Sons Of Kemet drummer Tom Skinner.

No offense to Radiohead drummer Phil Selway–who is certainly very good at his job–but Skinner’s fluid, subtle drumming is a nice addition to the usual Yorke vocal intensity. And Greenwood gets to cut loose on guitar in a way he hasn’t much in recent Radiohead outings.

It’s a mean set of set of songs, expertly done, and a lot of fun to hear.

Tracks I Liked

The Opposite - a funky beat with layered guitars

The Smoke - thin, lean, and menacing

Thin Thing - howling rock