Sam Smith has reemerged with a new album, and with it comes yet another accusation that the British singer has dunked on compatriots Radiohead.
The The Thrill Of It All belter has been called out by a squadron of music publications and fans of experimental alt-rock royalty for his new track Midnight Train. They claim the four-and-a-half minute jam is built on a guitar line that bears significant similarities to Radiohead’s breakout hit Creep.
Here are the two tracks, back to back:
Since Chris DeVille of Stereogum first pointed out Midnight Train “has the same rhythm, the same basic chord structure, the same verse-to-chorus dynamics, and even a similar tremolo-laden guitar pattern” as the 1993 corker, fans have been pointing out the likeness.
https://twitter.com/thekylacosta/status/926776639199109120
https://twitter.com/Max_j0nes/status/927962808200912896
https://twitter.com/blowsob/status/927386560441356288
what’s worse than a cold winter’s day, hearing Sam Smith rip off Radiohead’s creep
— Adithya Kumar (@sputnik_92) November 6, 2017
Ok, so it seems that Sam Smith covered Radiohead’s Creep on his new LP. Just listen to Midnight Train. Nice rendition.
— Maciek Smółka (@macieksmolka) November 3, 2017
While the new track lacks Jonny Greenwood’s iconic abrasive guitar stabs, the same fluttering tremolo effect can also be heard in some of Radiohead’s other work:
Other fans have pointed out that Radiohead doesn’t exactly have the sturdiest claim to full Creep’s originality.
A discussion about the track on the band’s subreddit has elicited a shrug, and a reminder that Radiohead were successfully sued by The Hollies songwriters Albert Hammond and Mike Hazelwood for a Creep song-writing credit.
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by u/nospamallowed from discussion Hear The New Sam Smith Song That Rips Off Radiohead
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Smith hasn’t commented on the apparent likeness. Considering his prior dealings with the band, it’s highly unlikely he will.
The 25-year-old, who won a Golden Globe in 2016 for his work on Spectre theme song Writing’s On The Wall, inadvertently dissed Radiohead for their shelved attempt at a James Bond theme song.
Asked what he thought about Radiohead’s Spectre, Smith appeared not to know of the band’s frontman Thom Yorke, let alone the fact Radiohead actually offered a track for the blockbuster.
While you come to terms with the fact these two musical powerhouses appear to have some weird kind of quasi-beef, we recommend you watch this fan-edit of the Spectre intro to imagine what could have been:
