Wanna Own One Of Daniel Johns’ Iconic Silverchair Guitars?

10 January 2022 | 2:38 pm | Staff Writer

"I’m guessing whoever wins this will love and appreciate this very rare piece of guitar art."

(Pic via YouTube)

Daniel Johns is going all out for the 25th anniversary of Silverchair hit Freak.

The legendary Aus muso started teasing a big announcement last week and today has unveiled some serious merch to celebrate the milestone of the seminal track.

The new merch arrives in the lead up to Johns’ new studio album, FutureNever, set for release in April, with the singer today revealing the LP’s FreakNever Silver Anniversary Bundle.

The bundle (which will set you back $649.00) includes a hand-signed silver vinyl version of FutureNever as well as handwritten lyrics to Freak and more, with all those pre-ordering going in the draw to win one of Johns’ vintage Jackson Roswell Rhoads guitars featured in the Freak music video.

You can read Johns’ letter to fans below:

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You’ve now entered 2022, the year of FutureNever. After years of crafting this record I’m so excited to share this music and concept with you all.

25 years ago on 13th Jan 1997 a little song I wrote called 'Freak' was released by my band Silverchair as our first post-Frogstomp statement. The song is special to me as it’s about celebrating being an outcast at a time when I felt very different to all the other high school kids out there. We played 'Freak' in every Silverchair live show and importantly it was the first song I ‘reclaimed’ when I performed it with my friend What So Not at Laneway and Splendour in the Grass festivals in 2019.

To celebrate the Silver Anniversary of Freak’s release, I have a very special bundle coming. A limited-quantity, single-pressing run of hand-signed, silver FutureNever vinyl is available for pre-order from now until this Sunday 16th Jan (AEDT). This edition of the album will never be available for purchase again, EVER.

I have also partnered with Dodgy Paper to create my own run of recycled 1997 paper created via a unique process where itineraries, magazines, newspapers and comics from 1997 will be made into a pulp and blended into a one-of-a-kind A3 sheet of ‘97 FreakyPaper. On this paper I will handwrite the lyrics of 'Freak', which is possibly one of the coolest and most collectible things I’ve ever made available.

For this edition of FutureNever, artist Matt Ryan has created a truly extraordinary cover image featuring a 17 year-old me (complete with eyebrow piercing), frozen in time in the FutureNever museum, illuminated by the iconic Freak lamps. As I’ve mentioned before, this record is very much about me not only coming to peace with but celebrating my past for the first time. FutureNever is the perfect platform to explore and celebrate my past in such a fun way.

These silver vinyl LPs + handwritten lyrics on 1997 FreakyPaper will be offered as a limited edition set with an incredible stonewashed ‘If Only I Could Be As Cool As You’ tee.

Another short sleeved shirt will be offered with this bundle, (a deep cut for mega fans) the tee reads ‘Nobody Knows I’m Daniel Johns’, a take on the ‘Nobody Knows I’m A Lesbian’ tee I wore for a couple of Freakshow-era photoshoots and some memorable live shows.

But wait, there’s more. To keep you warmer than a Freak heater, the FreakNever bundle will also include a crewneck sweater and a beanie.

Making this FreakNever edition extra special, one lucky person who pre-orders this version of the album will win one of my vintage Jackson Roswell Rhoads guitars as featured in the 'Freak' music video. I actually own two of these guitars, they only ever made 126 of them and they are almost impossible to find. It feels greedy to hold onto two of these guitars, and I’m guessing whoever wins this will love and appreciate this very rare piece of guitar art. They are worth well over $10,000 and are very difficult to find and, yes, I have played this guitar on FutureNever!

Every limited-vinyl run we’ve done has sold out in record time, so if you want one of these get in quickly because due to vinyl supply issues we will very possibly sell out early.

You can check out the bundle here.