After first being made aware of their existence back in May 2021, Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, and Tom Skinner – or as they are now known The Smile – have maintained a particularly elusive approach to pretty much every aspect of their early period as a band. Minimal information on anything, 2 completely contrasting singles ahead of the album, and 3 shows (all performed within 15 hours of each other) in the round at ‘Magazine’ in London; with an accompanying international raffle for tickets. Aside from the Glastonbury livestream that they were announced, give or take 6000(?) people flocked down to the band’s first shows on the disenchanting side-streets of Greenwich to get a glimpse of something… anything.
Next up, show #2 https://t.co/ToW62zSilU pic.twitter.com/CbbOCzSBob
— The Smile (@thesmiletheband) January 30, 2022
Beginning at 8pm, for those of us only fortunate enough to bag a livestream ticket, the first thing that catches our eye is just how pretty it all is. For a band ironically named after a Ted Hughes poem, their eye for cute lighting is absolutely on point. You also can’t help but notice the consistency of everything they’ve put out so far. The Glastonbury stream, all of the practice sessions on their socials, and now their first gigs – all are happening with the 3 members stood in a circle simply letting everything happen around them. Once the music started, I’m not even sure they remembered we were there… that’s a good thing by the way. Aesthetics aside, there were myriad musical moments that I feel everyone should be aware of: Jonny Greenwood playing a harp and synthesizer at the same time, Greenwood also playing the bass guitar with a violin bow (very cool), a rather dramatic telling of William Blake’s ‘The Smile’ from none other than Cillian Murphy, an updated version of ‘lost’ Radiohead track ‘Skirting on the Surface’ that I’m pretty sure ended up being played in 15/16 for any of you nerds, and (of course) anything else Jonny Greenwood did. We’re now aware of 12 Smile songs, until an announcement for the album drops… I guess this is just all we know. Some especially sneaky fans managed to get a bit of footage from the night, see below the encore to show 2.
The only difference between all the shows is one that only the attendants of the first show will really feel bad about, that’s the inclusion of a set-closing cover of ‘It’s Different for Girls’ by Joe Jackson. After the minute or 2 of applause for an encore of 2 and 3, the band would come back on and reveal new Smile track ‘Just Eyes and Mouth’ and then the cover. Unfortunately for everyone at show one, Yorke, Greenwood and Skinner just didn’t fancy it that time. I’d link a video but the exclusivity of the event means that if you want to see the show, you’ll have to get hold of someone with an on-demand code. Good luck, it’s worth it. Until then, here’s their latest single ‘The Smoke’ and its accompanying video. See Below.
