Johnny Marr

The Frontier Touring Company are excited to announce, Johnny Marr, one of the most celebrated guitarists in the history of contemporary music will headline two special shows on Australian shores in January 2014!

Heading down under as part Falls & Southbound Festivals December 2013/January 2014, Marr will play Melbourne on Saturday 4 January 2014 at the Corner Hotel and Sydney on Tuesday 7 January 2014 at Oxford Art Factory.  Playing to Australian audiences for the first time as a solo act, Johnny Marr will perform songs from his debut album The Messenger (out now through Warner Music, watch the clip for single ‘New Town Velocity here) along with some Smiths classics.

Marr was first known for his work alongside Morrissey as the creative force behind The Smiths, releasing four classic and highly influential studio albums and the live set Rank, all of which peaked at #1 or #2 on the UK album chart.

“The same smouldering intensity shows through as Marr’s chords remind us how, before he was even 20, he was in a band that would define the future of British guitar music. He explores that achievement in ‘New Town Velocity’ as he softly sings “Leave school for poetry”, with eyes closed.” - NME.com

Since leaving The Smiths in 1987, Marr has continued his career as an official member and touring guitarist for a diverse array of acclaimed bands including Modest Mouse and The Cribs, and has guested on recordings by the Pet Shop Boys, John Frusciante, Talking Heads and Beck. He has also earned Q’s Lifetime Achievement Award, Mojo’s Classic Songwriter Award and the Inspiration Award at the Ivor Novellos (presented, respectively, by Radiohead’s Ed O’Brien, Bernard Butler of Suede and Franz Ferdinand frontman Alex Kapranos).

Based in Portland, Oregon since 2005, Marr returned to the UK to commence work on The Messenger. “The underlying idea of the record is my experience of growing up in Europe,” he explains. “When you’re away from your home city you’re more compelled to write about it, whether that’s because you’re homesick or you’ve got more objectivity, I don’t know. Growing up in the city influences you, and I’ve continued to see, stories and energy in it.”

‘The Messenger’ represents the first chance to capture Johnny Marr’s musical vision exactly as he envisioned, mixing elements of angular art-rock, indie and rock ‘n’ roll. And if the past tells us anything, it’s that Marr’s future projects are an on-going story worthy of the world’s attention and that these headline shows are not to be missed!