Johnny Marr Finds Defiance in Idealism on New Single ‘It’s Time’

Johnny Marr released a new single, “It’s Time.” The uplifting rock number is the third song to emerge from the Smiths guitarist’s forthcoming LP, The Age of Everything, out Oct. 2 via BMG.

“’It’s Time’ is my way of singing about some worldly issues but finding defiance in idealism,” Marr said in a statement. “I wanted a lyric that matched the exuberance of the music but is actually about resisting cynicism and corruption: ‘Everybody ain’t making it, change the weather and breaking it. Mobilize to know the truth. Open eyes to know the truth.’ I guess it’s about the assholes with dodgy views.”

The music video for “It’s Time” was filmed earlier this year at the biggest headlining show of Marr’s solo career, held at Manchester’s Castlefield Bowl.

The Age of Everything, Marr’s fifth full-length studio album, features 10 tracks. It was written in London, developed live on the road across the East Coast of the U.S., and recorded in Manchester. The musician has so far shared “Spin” and “Ophelia.”

“This is the record that’s been the most cathartic,” Marr shared when the album was announced. “The title came to me early in the process and became an inescapable idea. It seemed to sum up the way I think a lot of people are feeling. It’s all encompassing, but it’s not necessarily a negative statement. There’s a sense of overwhelm in the culture brought about by technology, but looking at it with a different light, there could also be a sense of possibility.”

Along with the album, Marr will released an illustrated, enhanced, and reformatted anniversary edition of his autobiography, Set the Boy Free in Oct. 22 via Thames & Hudson. The book features previously-unseen archival photography, a new introduction, a personal eulogy for Johnny’s friend and the Smiths’ bassist Andy Rourke, and a foreword by Noel Gallagher.