The Smile’s first era was shrouded in Radiohead smoke — and understandably so. Two-thirds of the trio’s lineup comes from the legendary British act, and their debut record, A Light for Attracting Attention, while impressive, often sounded like the musicians’ former band. And yet, with the act’s latest effort Wall of Eyes, Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, and drummer Tom Skinner seem to be pushing the limits of what The Smile can be, carving out the project’s unique identity in real-time with uncompromising compositions that are as unconventional as they are tuneful.
Wheres A Light for Attracting Attention was a shotgun blast of musical ideas, jumping from Anima-esque electronic soundscapes (“The Smoke,” “Open the Floodgates”) to groovy art rock (“The Opposite,” “Thin Thing”) to angsty rockers (“We Don’t Know What Tomorrow Brings”) to orchestra-backed tear-jerkers (“Free In the Knowledge”), Wall of Eyes hones in on a singular vision. The lads have put down their shotguns for snipers.
And what’s in Wall of Eyes‘s crosshair? A swirling, vibrant world that distills the foundation of its predecessor down to the essentials before letting what’s left bloom and mutate into its own beast. Wall of Eyes is the sound of a more confident, collaborative The Smile, a version of the band willing to let their ideas ferment, even at the expense of immediacy. No track on the album rushes out of the gate with the hurried intensity of their 2022 debut single “You Will Never Work in Television Again.” Instead, these songs start reserved, only revealing their true scope as they move through their extended runtimes.
The eponymous opener establishes the band’s newfound emphasis on subtle, building compositions. Muffled tom beats and a samba-like acoustic guitar slowly give way to surreal flourishes of reverberating, ominous ambiance via the meeting of strings and electronics — all in 5/4 time. Unsettling tension rises throughout, ultimately resulting in the song caving in on itself as a flurry of chromatic electric guitar notes attack the once-peaceful landscape of “Wall of Eyes.”
Later tracks “Teleharmonic” and “I Quit” pull similar tricks, allowing relatively simple beginnings to mature as new sonic textures are added one at a time. The former’s modulating synth pads find warmth in fleeting moments of organic instrumentation, while the latter’s manipulated guitar chords turn from intriguing to suspenseful as Greenwood’s trademark orchestration makes its presence known.
Such strong musical arcs give the songs of Wall of Eyes a distinct feeling of cohesion, one that, in retrospect, was somewhat missing on A Light for Attracting Attention. Even when that album did dip its toe into the dynamic waters of methodical construction and linear progressions, like “A Hairdryer” or “Skirting on the Surface,” the results felt insular, a compelling but disconnected story rather than a piece working in the interest of a larger work. If Wall of Eyes is Pulp Fiction, spinning separate tales that intersect, A Light for Attracting Attention is an anthology.
The very construction of Wall of Eyes seems to hint at this newfound focus. Its song lengths, track sequencing, and production personnel suggest both The Smile’s changing interests and their intention to get out from under Radiohead’s weight. Their debut stands at a towering 13 tracks and 53 minutes, while Wall of Eyes offers a more concise eight tracks and 45 minutes; Wall of Eyes has only a single song clocking in at under five minutes in length, while A Light for Attracting Attention has only two songs that exceed that five-minute mark; the debut boasts the production of long-time Radiohead collaborator Nigel Goodrich, while Suspiria producer Sam Petts-Davies took over for the new set.
This isn’t just the case for slower burns like “Teleharmonic.” Even on tracks that deliver the sonic story of Wall of Eyes through a snarl rather than Yorke’s delicate falsetto, there’s a noticeable albeit subtle change in approach. “Read the Room” boasts competing guitar lines, a shuffling snare beat, and an ever-shifting pulse as the trio works their way through the song’s unconventional structure. “Under Our Pillows” functions similarly, establishing a dizzying attack of arpeggiated guitars that echo “The Opposite” or even some moments on A Moon Shape Pool before transitioning into looser, almost psychedelic passages.
Then, there’s “Bending Hectic,” the eight-minute, penultimate epic that each of the previous songs seems to have been building up to. The song takes the dynamism of Wall of Eyes to its extreme, dipping into techniques most often found on post-rock records. Bending, microtonal guitar notes played in tempo rubato find their place as Skinner’s drums enter to define the song’s direction. Just as a sense of normalcy begins to establish itself, though, a piercing cacophony of strings takes over, eventually giving way to the loudest, fuzziest, most cathartic climax of the project. It’s a satisfying payoff for “Bending Hectic,” but even more so for Wall of Eyes as a whole, especially as the contemplative coda of “You Know Me” bookends the album with stillness.
Does it all sound a tad like Radiohead? Of course, just as The Dead Weather had the spirit of Jack White, as The Breeders echoed Kim Deals’s work in Pixies, or how Atoms for Peace sounded… well, like Radiohead, too. Such is the nature of a side project, and it’s not necessarily always for the worse. A Light for Attracting Attention came through with several essential tracks for any mid-level Radiohead fan, and standout Wall of Eyes single “Friend of a Friend,” perhaps the most Radiohead-like tune on the album, quickly established itself as one of the best songs the trio has come through with yet.
But to reduce The Smile’s essence to “Radiohead-offshoot,” especially in the wake of Wall of Eyes, downplays the group’s growing and deserved autonomy. The trio is making compelling, creative, and wholly unique decisions for their little project, finding more and more of what lies at the core of The Smile with each new song. Luckily for music fans, whether Radiohead converts or true Smile originals, they’re bringing along listeners on that journey, sharing the wonderful fruits of their sonic exploration with each step they take.