Transcription: Thom Yorkes' line on The Smoke
Transcription and analysis of a line from Radiohead side-project The Smile
"The Smoke" is a song by The Smile, a side project of Radiohead. There’s so much I love about this track - the understated, pointillistic vocal melody; the Afrobeat-inspired bass line doubled with guitar; the brass tones that both frame and echo the melody. But most of all, it's the overall feel when everything comes together.
What caught my analytical ear was the phrasing of the bass line: it almost folds in on itself, looping and tumbling over a solid 4/4 drum groove:
The line is in many ways quite simple, however the repeating pentatonic motif begins dropping eighth notes from its established pattern, creating a melodic elision that effectively creates two 14 beat phrases. When describing anything in music, context and function always have the final say. I feel there could be an interesting conversation to discuss what exactly is happening within this groove. First, here is the the line written out in 4/4 time:
If the line is taken out of context a case could be made that it consists of two bars of 7/8, one bar of 6/8 and then the initial phrase in 4/4, altogether repeated two times. This take is based on honoring the original motif that is set up with the double sixteenth note pickup starting the phrase:
Another interpretation could be alternating bars of 3/4 and 4/4 time - while this seems less correct analytically, I do feel it is more functionally accurate. By not splitting the phrase on an eighth note the line still fits well over the drums by just 'flipping' the inner phrase around to fit the time signature:
Ultimately, my opinion is that this line is best written and described as being in 4/4 time with some interesting rhythmic phasing created by omitting 8th notes, flipping and turning it on itself, all while being grounded by the structure of the drums. To me, this makes the most sense musically and functionally. After all, is it a D minor 7 chord in first inversion or an F6 chord? Context and functionality should be the arbiters of that decision.
If I were to learn this song in earnest, my analytical mind would make a few other notes to aid in the process:
The doubled guitar line is sometimes a bit swung, while the bass line is straight. This rub helps create fingerprint of the feel
There are different length extensions of the original motif before each chorus drops - take note
The phrase lengths within each chorus are odd and not-identical - tricky!
Learn the melodic variations at the end of phrases in the chorus for full authenticity
Anyways... just a bit of left-brain indulgence that is certainly not necessary to get stuck into this music, but can be fun to entertain every now and then.
Benjamin Campbell © 2025