Daniel Johns In Conversation: What If The Future Never Happened? brings intimate storytelling to four Australian cities this November.
After disappearing from stages for more than five years, Daniel Johns is finally ready to resurface with something nobody saw coming.
Daniel Johns In Conversation: What If The Future Never Happened? mixes film screenings with proper intimate storytelling sessions, celebrating the worldwide premiere of his long-awaited short film across Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and Newcastle.
Each night revolves around screening What If The Future Never Happened?, but the real magic happens during hour-long conversations where Johns opens up about his creative process and early days.
Expect rare photos nobody’s seen before, moving archival footage and unreleased recordings pulled straight from his personal vault, including those legendary four-track bedroom demos from Neon Ballroom sessions and the original songwriting session for Straight Lines.
Here’s where it gets interesting – Johns will also reveal ideas for songs that were meant for a sixth Silverchair album that never happened, plus fresh material from his solo work and collaborations. Every show will be different depending on the vibe, with fans able to submit questions beforehand in each city.
Daniel Johns In Conversation: What If The Future Never Happened?
- What: Film screening with intimate conversation and unreleased music
- Presale: Wednesday 24 September, 11am local via frontiertouring.com/danieljohns
- General sale: Thursday 25 September, 1pm local
- Saturday 1 November: State Theatre, Sydney via ticketmaster.com.au
- Friday 7 November: Newcastle Civic Theatre, Newcastle via civictheatrenewcastle.com.au
- Sunday 9 November: Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane via ticketmaster.com.au
- Thursday 13 November: Palais Theatre, Melbourne via ticketmaster.com.au
- Tickets: here
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Directed by James Medlam, What If The Future Never Happened? is a genre-bending, semi-autobiographical trip that throws reality and fantasy into a blender. Daniel Johns shot it back in 2022 but held it back to coincide with frogstomp’s 30th anniversary. Set in 1994, it follows teenage Daniel dodging local bullies when some mysterious future figure rocks up and changes everything.
Johns reckons the film sits somewhere between reality and fantasy, featuring orchestral arrangements that reimagine Silverchair classics with contemporary twists. Sound design comes courtesy of Adam Alexander from Bamm Bamm Wolfgang, while the sci-fi elements create a proper time portal back to the ’90s.
Shot in Newcastle on Awabakal Land with local talent front and back of camera, the film doubles as a love letter to Silverchair’s hometown. Newcastle entertainment company Winarch Experience helped fund it, with founder Paul Lambess backing local stories and getting them out to the world.
This comeback follows Daniel Johns’ second solo album FutureNever absolutely smashing ARIA records in 2022, hitting number one twice and camping in the top 10 for seven weeks straight. These conversation shows mark his first proper stage appearances since stepping away from regular touring, making November pretty essential for anyone who’s been waiting.
For more information, head here.
