Silverchair sign new record deal to re-release albums after decade-long hiatus

Silverchair have sparked reunion rumours after announcing a comeback with their most iconic studio albums.

EXCLUSIVE

Australian rock gods Silverchair have emerged from their 10-year “indefinite hibernation” to relaunch their five albums to the streaming generation.

The band signed a new label deal with Sony Music this week which is also bound to ignite speculation of a long-awaited band reunion.

Frontman Daniel Johns, bassist Chris Joannou and drummer Ben Gillies have partnered with the label they originally signed to as 15-year-olds in 1994 to rejuvenate the streaming fortunes of their five multi-platinum, chart-topping albums – Frogstomp, Freak Show, Neon Ballroom Diorama and The Young Modern.

Chris Joannou, Daniel Johns and Ben Gillies in fun mode ahead of 2008 Big Day Out gigs. Picture: News Corp Australia.

Silverchair’s top five songs on Spotify, including debut No. 1 single Tomorrow and 2007 ARIA Single of the Year, Straight Lines, have generated more than 165 million streams on Spotify alone without any promotion from the band members.

Sony, who also distributes the lucrative catalogues of AC/DC, Midnight Oil and John Farnham, plan to give Silverchair’s music a big push on the major streaming services to add to the band’s total of six million sales worldwide of their albums over their career.

The Newcastle teens blew up worldwide with their single Tomorrow. in 1994. Picture: Supplied.

While current hitmakers including Drake, Ed Sheeran, Taylor Swift and our own Tones and I dominate Spotify, Apple Music and other platforms with their songs generating billions of streams, legacy acts and their older big hits are increasingly being discovered courtesy of TikTok viral videos and film and television soundtracks.

“It’s great to have the catalogue all under one roof at Sony Music, back where it all began for Silverchair,” frontman Johns said.

Gillies said the trio are “so proud of these albums” and were confident they would be treated with “love and respect”.

Should we stop hoping for a reunion? Picture: Supplied.

While the band members gave no hint of any future reunion plans with their announcement, Sony Music Australia head Denis Handlin said there would be “exciting opportunities in the years ahead” for Silverchair’s music.

Handlin, who worked with the band on their first three records before Silverchair switched labels for the final two albums, Diorama and Young Modern, would be among those in the camp fervently hoping they would get back together.

Silverchair commanded the charts, airwaves and stages of Australia and the world from the moment the three Newcastle teens won an SBS talent competition with Tomorrow in 1994, riding the alternative rock wave until they called time out in 2011.

Expect to be hearing a lot of Silverchair on streaming playlists. Picture: Supplied.

They announced an “indefinite hibernation” – music industry code for a break-up – and went their separate ways, with Johns pursuing a solo career and myriad projects with other artists including Paul Mac and Luke Steele.

Joannou is now a successful restaurateur in Newcastle and Gillies, who co-starred with wife Jackie on The Real Housewives of Melbourne, launched his solo career last year.