Once one of the most beloved singers in alt-rock, Morrissey has sullied his once good reputation over the last decade or so (some would say all the way back to his debut album’s “Bengali in Platforms”) by saying some very dumb things over and over, constantly cancelling shows, and complaining constantly about all of it. He’s not had very good luck with record labels lately, either, with BMG dropping him in 2020, leaving his guest-filled album Bonfire of Teenagers unreleased. But he’s finally found a new label who will release his album and, surprisingly, it’s his original US label, Sire Records, that signed The Smiths in North America and released all of his solo albums through 1995’s Southpaw Grammar.
Morrissey’s new album is titled Make-Up Is a Lie and will be out March 6. It was produced by Joe Chiccarelli who has worked on a few Moz albums, including World Peace Is None of Your Business and Low in High School, and the players include Jesse Tobias, Camila Grey, Carmen Vandenberg, Juan Galeano, Alain Whyte, Gustavo Manzur, and Brendan Buckley. In addition to 10 Morrissey originals there’s also a cover of Roxy Music’s “Amazona.”
The first single from Make-Up is a Lie is it’s title track which was co-written with keyboardist Camila Grey and has him dipping into trip-hop territory. It will probably not make you think of Morrissey’s golden years on Sire but you can listen below.
The other interesting thing about this is it’s the first new album released on Sire in quite a while. Label co-founder Seymour Stein — whose signing include The Ramones, Talking Heads, Madonna, The Replacements, The Pretenders, Echo & The Bunnymen, My Bloody Valentine and many many more — stepped down from sire in 2018 and died in 2023.
In other news, Morrissey may be on a new (old) label but he’s till up to his old tricks, namely not playing shows. He postponed the first two dates of his US tour on January 2 and 3 due to “adverse reaction to a prescription medication.” His next scheduled date is Saturday (1/10) in San Antonio, TX.
MORRISSEY – MAKE-UP IS A LIE:
1. “You’re Right, It’s Time”
2. “Make-up is a Lie”
3. “Notre-Dame”
4. “Amazona” (Roxy Music cover)
5. “Headache”
6. “Boulevard”
7. “Zoom Zoom the Little Boy”
8. “The Night Pop Dropped”
9. “Kerching Kerching”
10. “Lester Bangs”
11. “Many Icebergs Ago”
Morrissey – 2026 Tour Dates
Saturday, Jan 10 – Boeing Center at Tech Port – San Antonio, TX
Tuesday, Jan 13 – The Criterion – Oklahoma City, OK
Thursday, Jan 15 – The Factory – St. Louis, MO
Saturday, Jan 17 – Fox Theatre – Atlanta, GA
Tuesday, Jan 20 – Mahaffey Theater (Duke Energy Center for the Arts) – St. Petersburg, FL
Thursday, Jan 22 – Hard Rock Live at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – Hollywood, FL
Sunday, Jan 25 – Altos de Chavón – La Romana, Dominican Republic
Friday, Feb 13 – Scandinavian Congress Center – Aarhus, Denmark
Sunday, Feb 15 – Sporthalle Hamburg – Hamburg, Germany
Tuesday, Feb 17 – Jahrhunderthalle – Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Friday, Feb 20 – Rockhal – Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
Tuesday, Feb 24 – De Doelen – Rotterdam, Netherlands
Saturday, Feb 28 – The O2 – London, United Kingdom
Wednesday, Mar 4 – Zénith de Lille – Lille, France
Saturday, Mar 7 – The Hall – Zurich, Switzerland
Monday, Mar 9 – Fabrique – Milan, Italy
Thursday, Mar 12 – Palau de les Arts – Valencia, Spain
Saturday, Mar 14 – Auditorio de Zaragoza – Zaragoza, Spain
Monday, Mar 16 – Cartuja Center – Sevilla, Spain