A Light for Attracting Attention

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A Light for Attracting Attention
File:ALFAA.png
Studio album by
the Smile
Released13 May 2022
Recorded2020–2021
Genre
Length53:18
LabelXL
ProducerNigel Godrich
Singles from A Light for Attracting Attention
  1. "You Will Never Work in Television Again"
    Released: 5 January 2022
  2. "The Smoke"
    Released: 27 January 2022
  3. "Skrting on the Surface"
    Released: 17 March 2022
  4. "Pana-vision"
    Released: 3 April 2022
  5. "Free in the Knowledge"
    Released: 20 April 2022
  6. "Thin Thing"
    Released: 9 May 2022

A Light for Attracting Attention is the debut studio album by the English rock band the Smile. It was digitally released through XL Recordings on 13 May, 2022, with a physical release on 17 June.

The Smile comprises the Radiohead members Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood with the drummer Tom Skinner. Yorke provided vocals, and he and Greenwood played guitar, bass and keyboards. The album was produced by Radiohead's longtime producer Nigel Godrich.

The Smile worked during the COVID-19 lockdowns and made their surprise debut in a performance streamed by Glastonbury Festival in May 2021. In early 2022, they released five singles and performed to an audience for the first time at three shows in London in January, which were livestreamed. They began a European tour in May. A Light for Attracting Attention received critical acclaim and reached number five on the UK Albums Chart.

Background and recording

Main article: The Smile (band)

The Smile comprises the Radiohead members Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood with the Sons of Kemet drummer Tom Skinner. They made their debut in a surprise performance for the concert video Live at Worthy Farm, produced by Glastonbury Festival and streamed on May 22, 2021.[1]

The Smile began working on A Light for Attracting Attention shortly before the first UK COVID-19 lockdowns,[2] with Radiohead's longtime producer Nigel Godrich.[3] According to Yorke, Greenwood and Skinner "had already tracked about four things before I even knew what was going on".[2] Yorke wrote the lyrics in his home during the lockdowns; he recorded his vocals to Godrich's studio from his home using streaming software, before his children returned from school each day. Yorke said "It got sort of protracted ... It was deeply frustrating, but it's been the same for everybody."[2] According to Greenwood, the album was almost complete by September 2021.[4]

Yorke performed a Smile song, "Free in the Knowledge", at the Letters Live event at the Royal Albert Hall, London, in October.[5] On January 29 and 30, the Smile performed to an audience for the first time at three shows at Magazine, London, which were livestreamed.[6] Yorke first performed "Skrting on the Surface" in 2009,[7] and in a different arrangement in 2012 with Radiohead.[8] He first performed "Open the Floodgates" solo in 2009.[9]

Composition

Per various critics, A Light for Attracting Attention is an art rock,[10] post-punk,[11] progressive rock,[11] electronica,[11] and Afrobeats[11] album that explores elements of math rock,[12] post-rock,[12] grunge,[13] electro-rock,[13] psychedelic rock[14] desert rock,[15] funk,[16] jazz,[12] breakbeat,[17] wonky,[16] and systems music.[18] The cover art was created by Yorke with Radiohead's longtime collaborator Stanley Donwood.[19]

Release

The Smile began releasing singles in early 2022. On 5 January, their debut single, "You Will Never Work in Television Again", was released to streaming services.[20] On 27 January, they released their second single, "The Smoke",[21] followed by "Skrting on the Surface" on 17 March.[22] The fourth single, "Pana-vision", was released on 3 April alongside a new solo song from Yorke, "That's How Horses Are"; both were used in the series finale of the television series Peaky Blinders, broadcast that day.[23] "Free in the Knowledge" was released on 20 April, and "Thin Thing" was released on 9 May.[24]

The Smile announced A Light for Attracting Attention on 20 April 2022, alongside the "Free in the Knowledge" single.[25] It was released digitally through XL Recordings on 13 May, with a physical release on 17 June.[25] The Smile began a European tour on 16 May,[26] with a North American tour to follow in November.[27]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.3/10[28]
Metacritic86/100[29]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[30]
Clash9/10[31]
DIY[32]
Exclaim!8/10[13]
The Guardian[17]
The Irish Times[12]
NME[10]
Paste8.3/10[14]
Pitchfork8.6/10[16]
Rolling Stone[33]

On Metacritic, A Light for Attracting Attention has a score of 86 out of 100 based on 23 reviews from critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[29] Pitchfork awarded it their "best new music" accolade, with the critic Ryan Dombal writing that it was "instantly, unmistakably the best album yet by a Radiohead side project".[16] In June 2022, Spin named A Light for Attracting Attention the best album of the year so far; the critic Zach Schonfeld wrote that its "high points rank with anything they've done this side of In Rainbows", and that "it almost makes you want to send Radiohead's other three members a sympathy card".[34]

A Light for Attracting Attention initially reached number 19 on the UK Albums Chart. After its retail release a month later, it reached number five.[35]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Thom Yorke; all music is composed by Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, Tom Skinner, and Nigel Godrich.

No.TitleLength
1."The Same"4:19
2."The Opposite"3:06
3."You Will Never Work in Television Again"2:48
4."Pana-vision"4:08
5."The Smoke"3:39
6."Speech Bubbles"4:16
7."Thin Thing"4:30
8."Open the Floodgates"4:29
9."Free in the Knowledge"4:12
10."A Hairdryer"5:17
11."Waving a White Flag"3:47
12."We Don't Know What Tomorrow Brings"3:16
13."Skrting on the Surface"5:31
Total length:53:18

Personnel

Credits adapted from album liner notes.[36]

Charts

Chart performance for A Light for Attracting Attention
Chart (2022) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[37] 15
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[38] 8
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[39] 5
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[40] 3
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[41] 95
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[42] 11
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[43] 3
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[44] 24
French Albums (SNEP)[45] 13
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[46] 6
Irish Albums (OCC)[47] 11
Italian Albums (FIMI)[48] 24
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[49] 13
Japanese Hot Albums (Billboard Japan)[50] 21
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[51] 25
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[52] 4
Scottish Albums (OCC)[53] 2
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[54] 16
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[55] 8
UK Albums (OCC)[56] 5
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[57] 1
US Billboard 200[58] 19

References

  1. ^ Savage, Mark (22 May 2021). "The Smile: Radiohead stars to debut new band at Glastonbury live-stream". BBC News. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  2. ^ a b c Bateman, Jason; Arnett, Will; Hayes, Sean (24 March 2022). "Thom Yorke & Jonny Greenwood". SmartLess (Podcast). 5:15 minutes in. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
  3. ^ Aubrey, Elizabeth (14 August 2021). "Nigel Godrich and Thom Yorke give cryptic update on new project the Smile". NME. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  4. ^ Earls, John (3 September 2021). "Jonny Greenwood on writing the soundtrack for new Princess Diana biopic Spencer". NME. Retrieved 3 September 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ Strauss, Matthew (20 December 2021). "Watch Thom Yorke play the Smile's "Free in the Knowledge"". Pitchfork. Retrieved 20 December 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  6. ^ Monroe, Jazz (30 January 2022). "The Smile's new songs, debuted in London, sound like Radiohead. (That's a good thing.)". Pitchfork. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  7. ^ Young, Alex (21 July 2014). "Hear 12 potential songs for Radiohead's new album". Consequence of Sound. Archived from the original on 2 May 2016. Retrieved 4 May 2016.
  8. ^ Hogan, Marc (4 March 2016). "19 unreleased Radiohead songs that could be on their next album". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 2 April 2016. Retrieved 4 April 2016.
  9. ^ Hogan, Marc (4 March 2016). "19 unreleased Radiohead songs that could be on their next album". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 2 April 2016. Retrieved 4 April 2016.
  10. ^ a b Trendell, Andrew (12 May 2022). "The Smile – A Light For Attracting Attention: free and easy Radiohead side-project". NME. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  11. ^ a b c d Gava, Lori (12 May 2022). "ALBUM REVIEW: The Smile - A Light For Attracting Attention". xsnoize.com. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  12. ^ a b c d Sweeney, Eammon (12 May 2022). "The Smile: A Light for Attracting Attention – Album of the year contender". The Irish Times. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  13. ^ a b c Hudson, Sarah (10 May 2022). "The Smile's A Light for Attracting Attention Could Easily Pass for Radiohead". Exclaim!. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  14. ^ a b Schonfeld, Zach (12 May 2022). "The Smile's A Light for Attracting Attention is a heady, groove-filled debut for Radiohead veterans". Paste. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  15. ^ Hakimian, Rob (13 May 2022). "ALBUM REVIEW: THE SMILE – A LIGHT FOR ATTRACTING ATTENTION". BPM. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  16. ^ a b c d Dombal, Ryan (12 May 2022). "The Smile: A Light for Attracting Attention". Pitchfork. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  17. ^ a b Petridis, Alexis (12 May 2022). "The Smile: A Light for Attracting Attention review – Radiohead spinoff offers no alarms, some surprises". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  18. ^ Empire, Kitty (5 February 2022). "The Smile review – Yorke and Greenwood stay close to the mothership". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  19. ^ Kreps, Daniel (20 April 2022). "Radiohead side project the Smile set release date for debut LP A Light for Attracting Attention". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
  20. ^ DeVille, Chris (5 January 2022). "The Smile – 'You Will Never Work In Television Again'". Stereogum. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  21. ^ DeVille, Chris (27 January 2022). "The Smile – "The Smoke"". Stereogum. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  22. ^ Brodsky, Rachel (17 March 2022). "The Smile – "Skrting On The Surface"". Stereogum. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  23. ^ Brereton, Greta (4 April 2022). "Listen to The Smile's eerie new single 'Pana-vision'". NME. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
  24. ^ Rettig, James (9 May 2022). "The Smile – 'Thin Thing'". Stereogum. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
  25. ^ a b Lavin, Will (20 April 2022). "The Smile announce debut album A Light for Attracting Attention". NME. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  26. ^ Monroe, Jazz (13 June 2022). "The Smile to tour North America". Pitchfork. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  27. ^ Richards, Will (18 May 2022). "The Smile debut new song 'Friend Of A Friend' as they kick off European tour". NME. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  28. ^ "The Smile A Light For Attracting Attention". AnyDecentMusic. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  29. ^ a b "A Light for Attracting Attention". Metacritic. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  30. ^ "A Light for Attracting Attention review by Neil Z. Yeung". allmusic.com. 13 May 2022. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  31. ^ Hill, Andy (13 May 2022). "The Smile - A Light For Attracting Attention". Clash. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
  32. ^ Tipple, Ben (12 May 2022). "The Smile - A Light For Attracting Attention". DIY. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  33. ^ Grow, Kory (12 May 2022). "The Smile's A Light for Attracting Attention: Review". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  34. ^ "The 30 Best Albums of 2022 (So Far)". Spin. 7 June 2022. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  35. ^ "Harry, Drake and Foals: Who got the UK's Number 1 album this week?". Official Charts Company. 24 June 2022. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  36. ^ A Light for Attracting Attention (liner notes). The Smile. London, England: XL Recordings. 2022. FXL1196LP.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  37. ^ "Australiancharts.com – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention". Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  38. ^ "Austriancharts.at – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  39. ^ "Ultratop.be – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  40. ^ "Ultratop.be – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  41. ^ "Billboard Canadian Albums: Week of May 28, 2022". Billboard. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  42. ^ "Danishcharts.dk – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  43. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
  44. ^ "The Smile: A Light for Attracting Attention" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  45. ^ "Lescharts.com – The Smile – A Liht for Attracting Attention". Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  46. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  47. ^ "Official Irish Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  48. ^ "Italiancharts.com – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
  49. ^ "Oricon Top 50 Albums: 2022-06-27/p/2" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
  50. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot Albums: 2022/06/22 公開". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved 22 June 2022.
  51. ^ "Charts.nz – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 July 2022.
  52. ^ "Portuguesecharts.com – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  53. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  54. ^ "Spanishcharts.com – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
  55. ^ "Swisscharts.com – The Smile – A Light for Attracting Attention". Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  56. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  57. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  58. ^ "Billboard 200: Week of July 2, 2022". Billboard. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
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