“The Spectre of New Wave and Post-Punk”: Johnny Marr on Noisey
Noisey, the music arm of Vice Magazine, has recently started posting video conversations between journalist John Doran and artists the site dubs “The British Masters”. The fourth entry in that series is an illuminating interview with Johnny Marr, perhaps best-known for his work in The Smiths, though also notable for his work with Electronic, Modest Mouse and The Cribs. In advance of the release of The Messenger, his first solo album, Marr talks with Doran about music in late 1970s/early 1980s Manchester and about the (heretofore overlooked) influence of black music on his guitar playing and on The Smiths.