Upon first listen, one might mistake The Smile's debut for a Radiohead album, not a surprise considering that Radiohead's Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood (as well as longtime producer Nigel Godrich) are two of the three core members of this side project. Conceived during the COVID-19 lockdown as a way for Yorke and Greenwood to jam, The Smile also features drummer Tom Skinner of modern jazz group Sons of Kemet, who invigorates the album with his lively backing and dizzying time signatures. With the help of Greenwood's friends in the London Contemporary Orchestra and various jazz artists from Skinner's orbit, the trio lean into their progressive and psychedelic tendencies here, sounding like an expansive, mind-bending version of Radiohead, with many of Radiohead's typical hallmarks--anxiety, dread, angst, and tension. -- Adapted from AllMusic.com.