Thom Yorke : Confidenza

Thom Yorke has proven himself to be far more than just the singer of Radiohead. Not only is he the singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist in one of the most important rock bands to arrive from the early 90s alternative rock scene, but Yorke has released highly regarded solo albums, collaborations with the likes of Flying Lotus and Four Tet, as well as forming the supergroup Atoms For Peace.

Like his Radiohead and The Smile musical partner Jonny Greenwood, Yorke has gotten into film score work as well. In 2018 Yorke scored Luca Guadagnino’s remake of Dario Argento’s classic Suspiria. It wasn’t any big surprise that it was a stunning work; haunting, melodic, and avante garde in just the right spots. His next major foray into film scores is for the recently released Italian film Confidenza. The score leans more into the avante garde, sounding like chamber music with touches of a jazz ensemble. It’s another win for Yorke, as well as being a rich and engaging standalone listen.

Thom Yorke fills Confidenza with lilting strings and obscure electronics throughout. Opener “The Big City” lies heavily in a dream-like state, combining traditional strings and woodwinds with a ghost-like waver of modern electronic touches. “Knife Edge” is one of the few vocal songs and it’s beautiful like a mournful lullaby. Yorke accompanies himself with a electric piano while strings hang lazily in the air. It’s a fantastic song.

Elsewhere, “Letting Down Gently” has a playful mood to it and jazz undertones in the horns interplay. “In The Trees” is menacing with darkly-hued electronics while “Four Ways In Time” showcases Yorke’s vocals and the feeling that this could have ended up on a solo LP as easily as on a film soundtrack. “Nosebleed Nuptials” has an almost New Orleans funeral feel to it with its mournful horns over an almost March-like rhythm. And final piece “On The Ledge” descends into chaos like Eric Dolphy or Ornette Coleman intermingling with Karlheinz Stockhausen.

Confidenza is a sometimes beautiful, sometimes chaotic score by Thom Yorke. Further proof that Yorke is fully capable of a career post-Radiohead, and surely to the chagrin of diehard Radiohead fans.