The Smile, comprised of Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood, Thom Yorke, plus friend and Tom Skinner, have announced their debut album. A Light for Attracting Attention will be available for download and via streaming from 13th May, 2022. A physical release will follow on 17th June, on limited edition yellow vinyl, black vinyl and CD.
The announcement followed the release of the latest single, Free in the Knowledge. Greenwood himself made the announcement in a newsletter issues to fans. The contents of which can be found below:
I feel grateful that we managed, with Nigel’s help, to record these songs in a way they deserve. And the singles released so far have been liked – as far as I can tell – which makes me feel dangerously confident in the rest of the record. As the all-knowing algorithm has it, if you liked that, you’ll love this, right? Hope so. Aside from anything, the brass and strings players who helped out – I really can’t wait for you to hear all their work too.
So yes, we’re properly proud and excited for everyone to have the whole thing – but, it’s been a drawn out process so far, with so many single songs released. I can only apologise for our tentativeness. Patience is a virtue, but then, so are sobriety and humility – and they’re not happening either. Nor can we persuade Apple Music to stop greying-out the titles of the unreleased tracks (the teases!) – but, come May 13th, everything will be out there, instead of in here.
As we prepare to play this all live, a small part of me views the record as a way of getting people familiar with the songs first. This is short sighted, but as I type this, I can’t really think beyond the first chord of the first concert in Croatia because that’s where so much of the excitement is for me. Live concerts are short-sighted, short-lived things, and all the more vital because of it.
But really, the record still feels worth your time – both the time spent waiting, and the time we’re asking you to invest in hearing it – which is all I can hope for. I’m listening to it constantly, long after I should have had enough, so maybe that’s the right, long-sighted view of this. I hope you have the same experience
Jonny Greenwood, The Smile newsletter
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