English rock band The Smile released its second album of the year, “Cutouts,” on Friday.
The Smile is a spinoff of Radiohead, a five-member rock band that found early success with its single “Creep.” Since that album, Radiohead has become notorious for its artistry and ever-evolving style, fusing rich electronic sounds with abstract lyrics and traditional rock riffs. Radiohead hasn’t released anything since its 2016 album “A Moon Shaped Pool,” and each of its members has gone on to work on individual projects.
As members of Radiohead and the leads of The Smile, Thom Yorke, the vocalist and bassist, and Jonny Greenwood, the guitarist and keyboardist, didn’t have much to prove musically. Radiohead’s discography, containing critically revered classics like “OK Computer,” “Kid A” and “In Rainbows,” has a legacy that the majority of musicians would dream of building.
Yorke and Greenwood came together with percussionist and Sons of Kemet co-founder Tom Skinner to form The Smile in 2020. Hoping to escape the monumental expectations that came with recording as Radiohead, they drew from a more improvisational, jazz-inspired sound, courtesy of Skinner’s raucous and groovy drumming style. The trio burst onto the scene with their 2022 album “A Light for Attracting Attention,” which was followed up by 2024’s “Wall of Eyes.”
Now, not even nine months after The Smile’s latest album, the group has returned yet again with its newest project, “Cutouts.”
Despite being recorded during the “Wall of Eyes” sessions, “Cutouts” is a surprisingly cohesive and powerful album. It’s indicative of a band that has finally hit its stride, marrying each member’s eclectic playing style into a project even better than the sum of its parts.
Though the band’s chemistry is clear from the start, “Cutouts” doesn’t begin very strong. The first two tracks, “Foreign Spies” and “Instant Psalm,” are gorgeous but sleepy ballads. Greenwood does well to craft a stunning soundscape with a variety of synths and guitar effects in these songs, but they ultimately lack the instrumental contrast and range that defines his greatest work.
Although it might not be an amazing opener, “Foreign Spies” establishes themes felt throughout the rest of the project, namely paranoia and body dysmorphia. Yorke, singer and lyricist for The Smile, croons on the track about backstabbing spies and a world melting under its own heat. Later, he comments on various shapes of the human form and expresses discomfort in his own flesh. Yorke’s lyrical style has always been abstract, but “Cutouts” takes atypical songwriting to a whole new level.
Jazz rhythms and instrumentation leave their mark all over The Smile’s music but none more than “Cutouts.” Yorke’s lyrics become almost chant-like as he weaves his vocals into Greenwood’s skillful guitar lines. The energy is heightened even further by a saxophone solo that plays through the chorus.
This high-octane performance is a defining characteristic of “Cutouts” as an album, although some highlights on the tracklist do slow down the pace a little bit for dramatic effect. The fourth song, “Colours Fly,” employs that drama well by showcasing an incredible performance from Greenwood.
Any review of “Cutouts” would be remiss to leave out Skinner’s contribution to the trio’s sound. His unbridled energy is thrilling to listen to, especially on tracks like “Eyes and Mouth” where he seems to uncork his virtuosity with chaotic drum fills and swingy rhythms. His drum performance is perhaps the glue that really holds this album together, injecting duller moments with groove and rhythm.
Possibly the strongest song on this album is the closer, “Bodies Laughing.” Yorke ties together the themes of the album with somber vocals, picturing his self-loathing through the laughing of a huge crowd. A sweeping crescendo of strings brings this album to a climactic conclusion and leaves the listener with a lot to think about, particularly about Yorke’s portrayal of the human body and battle with his own shame.
Undeniably, “Cutouts” is an imperfect album. It lacks the instrumental complexity and creativity that epitomized Radiohead at its best, and it falls short in some of its slower sections. For the short time it took to create, though, “Cutouts” is a work of art and proves that the band is not slowing down.