This is a partial list of the artists with whom guitarist Johnny Marr has worked since his old band the Smiths dissolved in 1987: The supergroup Electronic, The The (he was a member), the Pretenders (he was briefly a member), Beck, David Byrne, The Cribs, Hans Zimmer (on scores for “Inception” and “The Amazing Spider-Man 2”) and Modest Mouse, for whom he moved to Portland, Ore., for a few years, before returning to his native Manchester, England.
A guitarist of great skill and humor once yoked to Morrissey, a difficult and charismatic frontman, Marr is — at least for people of a certain age — Keith Richards’ college rock analog, if Richards were a vegan teetotaler who once appeared on “Portlandia.”
Marr, who recently released his first-ever solo discs, “The Messenger” (last year) and “Playland” (last month), is naturally nice. He’ll mention the Smiths before you can, maybe because he knows that every interviewer is secretly trying to think of ways to bring them up, and he doesn’t want things to get awkward.
In a phone interview to promote his Tuesday show at the Vic, Marr discussed his old bands, his new solo career and working with “Inception”/”Interstellar” director Christopher Nolan. Excerpts from the interview follow:
On releasing two albums in little more than 18 months:
If you’re a songwriter and songs come and you think they’re good, you’d be foolish to ignore it. I come from a culture where putting out a record a year was not freakish — (it was) almost expected. Actually, it’s a shame if it’s considered really, really unusual, because it means we’re all spending too much time in the studio.
On his early years:
It all seems so long ago that I was a teenage musician, desperately trying to get heard and get my band some gigs. It really doesn’t feel so long ago, but I know it is, and I think I’m still connected to that person, so I’m happy to be making records that people still think are cool. I’m still really excited to do what I do. … I’m doing what I’ve been doing since 14, 15, really, which might sound unusual, but I left school when I was 15 and was asked to join a pro band. It was a good apprenticeship. Then I became known, of course, for being in the Smiths. We became a really big band that are still loved to this day, which is an amazing thing.
On being a late-blooming frontman:
I like being upfront. When I was starting out, I had a couple bands where I was upfront, so what I’m doing now isn’t brand-new territory, though I like to think 30 years experience has made me learn a trick or two. I had bands that were life and death to me before the Smiths.
On taking up with Modest Mouse:
I go to a situation or a band where I think I can add something, and there’s camaraderie, or I can develop as a musician. That’s stuck with me my whole life. Modest Mouse is a good example. My moving to Portland, Ore., from Manchester, England, was not really that different from me taking two buses and a train to go play with people I’d never met before, because I believed we were going to make good music. My life has always been at the service of where I want to go as a guitar player and a songwriter, and I realize how lucky I am to have lived that kind of life.
On Christopher Nolan’s reputation for micromanaging
I think great people trust that you’re in there to do a really great job. If you’re lucky enough to get a great director, unlike rock music, you know that the director’s vision is your template, and that in itself is a really great discipline. … I loved working with people who are very intense. That tends to rub off on you. All the collaborations I’ve done over the years, whether it’s David Byrne or Pet Shop Boys, have usually been intense.
On playing Smiths songs live:
I don’t start with the Smiths. I start with what I’ve been writing in this century. I have a simple rule of thumb: I think of the audience as being quite like myself, and I assume people want to hear modern music with energy, played with enthusiasm. Playing the old stuff is like a celebration, and my attitude is that once you’ve had a good time making new music, if you’re lucky enough to have songs people know very well and like a lot, then it’s a privilege to do them. … I think it would be a little weird if someone came to see me and I didn’t play “How Soon Is Now?” Every time I play it, it feels pretty cool. I don’t really overthink it.
Twitter @chitribent
When: 8 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Vic Theatre, 3145 N. Sheffield Ave.
Tickets: $29; 18+; 773-472-0449 or Etix.com
