- Well-loved for the guitar work that gave Morrisey and his songs the musical platform they deserved, Johnny Marr deserves his legendary status due to the Smiths alone. Vegan Marr has (rarely in this industry) been happily married since before even the Smiths formation. Perhaps that plays into his stable creative force and keeps artistic integrity above any desire for stardom. This focus on his work above notoriety keeps his tunes fresh, relevant and more than just well produced pop by numbers, even though that is exactly what this album is littered with.
That jangle, that '80’s pop sensibility is evident here on Call the Comet and a song like Day in Day Out is pure radio fodder. It is as if he decided to write a song like Echo Beach by Martha and the Muffins. Marr knows how to tweak things to recreate anew. Tiny modifications make great ear worms. His tunes are surprising, crisp, mint and even youthful. Marr is no bedroom, laptop-wrangling, bleepy muso. He crafts band-based pop songs.
Hey Angel is a solid, pounding tune and his guitar and voice are embedded into a pop brutality. Hi Hello is a Smiths tune hidden behind a radio mix and perhaps is a good place to start if you are a Smiths fan who hasn’t heard Johnny’s solo work. My Eternal is an urging and propulsive tune that brings Julian Casablanas’ solo work to mind and is a back to the '80’s romp. The album ends with A Different Gun, Manchester drawl in evidence and you can see where '90’s Madchester got its’ effortless swagger from.
Marr can sing but I can’t say that’s what draws me to these songs. His ability to craft songs and his wrangling of a guitar are still so strong and on the money. If you think music isn’t as good as it used to be then Call the Comet will demonstrate that Johnny Marr still is.
- Marcus Lavers.