Morrissey on the shores of Lake Como
Morrissey arrives in Cernobbio on July 19, 2026, at 9:00 p.m., taking the stage at the Ex-Galoppatoio di Villa Erba. The concert is part of Lake Sound Park's summer program, which transforms the former racecourse into an open-air music zone beside Lake Como. The combination of his distinctive baritone, sharp lyrics and the evening atmosphere by the water gives this performance a different setting from a traditional indoor tour.
For longtime listeners, this is an opportunity to hear songs connecting the era of The Smiths with more than four decades of Morrissey's solo career. For audiences who know him primarily through titles such as "Everyday Is Like Sunday", "Suedehead", "First of the Gang to Die" or "Irish Blood, English Heart", the concert offers an overview of the different phases of his catalogue. At the same time, the current tour is not merely a retrospective: the new album "Make-Up Is a Lie", released in March 2026, is at its centre.
Ticket sales for this event are currently underway.
The current phase of his career and the new album
"Make-Up Is a Lie" is Morrissey's fourteenth solo studio album and his first new album in more than five years. It was released on March 6, 2026, through Sire/Warner Records, marking the singer's return after three decades to the record company associated with an important part of his early solo career.
The album was produced by Joe Chiccarelli, known for his work with artists such as The Strokes, The White Stripes, Weezer and My Morning Jacket. It was recorded at La Fabrique studio in southern France and features Morrissey's longtime and more recent collaborators, including Jesse Tobias, Camila Grey, Carmen Vandenberg, Juan Galeano, Alain Whyte, Gustavo Manzur and Brendan Buckley.
Across twelve songs, the album combines guitar rock, darker electronic textures, dramatic vocal arcs and melodies drawing on Morrissey's longstanding inclination toward sharp, ironic storytelling. The title track begins over a rhythmic, almost trip-hop foundation, while "Notre-Dame", "Kerching Kerching", "Zoom Zoom the Little Boy" and "The Monsters of Pig Alley" reveal different sides of the new material. A cover of Roxy Music's song "Amazona" is also included.
More important for concert audiences is the fact that the new album already has a clearly defined place in the tour repertoire. At the performance in Berlin in early July, five songs from the album were played, including "Notre-Dame", "Kerching Kerching", "Zoom Zoom the Little Boy", "The Monsters of Pig Alley" and "Make-Up Is a Lie". This means the current material is not merely a brief promotional stop between older hits, but one of the evening's central components.
What can be expected from the repertoire
The exact set list for Cernobbio has not been announced in advance and may change from city to city. Nevertheless, the recent concert in Berlin offers a useful insight into how the tour has been structured. The program there included twenty songs and ended with "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out".
The repertoire combined the new album, solo favourites and songs by The Smiths. The titles performed included "How Soon Is Now?", "A Rush and a Push and the Land Is Ours", "I Know It's Over" and "Shoplifters of the World Unite", alongside the solo songs "Billy Budd", "Now My Heart Is Full", "Everyday Is Like Sunday", "Suedehead", "First of the Gang to Die", "Life Is a Pigsty" and "Jack the Ripper".
Such a selection demonstrates several important points:
- The new album receives enough space for the concert to have the identity of the current tour, rather than being merely a compilation of familiar songs.
- Songs by The Smiths remain an important part of the evening, but they are distributed among different periods of the solo career.
- The program ranges from short, direct singles to slower and emotionally heavier compositions such as "I Know It's Over" and "Life Is a Pigsty".
- The finale may be reserved for a title that brings the entire audience together, but no individual encore is guaranteed before the performance itself.
Morrissey's concerts work best when this contrast is not smoothed out. One moment can feel almost anthemic, the next reduced to a voice and a melancholic melody, before suddenly shifting into a harder guitar rhythm. His approach to interpretation often changes the emphasis of familiar songs: lines are stretched, phrase endings become more dramatic and the audience takes over choruses it recognises after the first few bars.
Who will find this concert especially appealing
The most immediate audience consists of listeners who have followed Morrissey since The Smiths or from the period of the albums "Viva Hate", "Vauxhall and I", "You Are the Quarry" and "Ringleader of the Tormentors". For them, the current tour offers an encounter with songs whose arrangements, tempo and emotional tone have changed over the years, but which have remained a key part of his concert identity.
The concert may also appeal to younger audiences exploring post-punk, indie rock and British alternative music. The influence of The Smiths can be heard across generations of guitar bands, while Morrissey's solo work combines elements of glam rock, orchestral pop, rockabilly and classic British pop. The new album further expands that range with electronic rhythms and atmospheric production layers.
This is not, however, a neutral evening for casual listening. Morrissey's music requires attention to the lyrics, the voice and shifts in mood. Audiences who appreciate dramatic vocals, black humour, melodrama and the contrast between a cheerful melody and a dark lyric will gain the most from the concert.
Ex-Galoppatoio di Villa Erba as a concert venue
The Ex-Galoppatoio is a broad, flat and enclosed green area within the Villa Erba complex. The site has road access, extends toward the lake and can be equipped with temporary structures for concerts and other public events. It is not an enclosed arena with permanently defined seating and acoustics, but an open-air space whose appearance depends on the production of each individual event.
This changes the experience of the performance. Instead of enclosed walls and fixed seating, the audience gets the evening sky, the park and proximity to the shoreline. Lake Sound Park builds its identity precisely around this: the program runs from July 9 to 26, with concerts beginning at dusk and continuing into Cernobbio's nighttime atmosphere.
The Villa Erba complex includes a historic villa, a congress centre, a centuries-old park and the former racecourse. The park covers approximately 100,000 square metres and opens onto Lake Como. The villa itself dates from the end of the 19th century and is connected to the family of film director Luchino Visconti, who spent his summers there.
In an open-air venue, the audience position, weather conditions and arrival time are important. Since the publicly available information does not specify an exact sector layout or fixed capacity for this concert, it should not be assumed that the experience will be identical in every part of the site. Arriving earlier usually provides more time for entrance checks, orientation and choosing a position before the performance begins.
It is worth securing tickets in good time.
Concert location and arrival
Villa Erba is located at Largo Luchino Visconti 4, 22012 Cernobbio, on the western shore of Lake Como. Cernobbio lies immediately north of the city of Como and is well connected by road, bus and lake ferry services.
For travel from Como, the organiser lists several public transport options. The C110 bus toward Menaggio and Colico and the N6 line toward Maslianico stop at "Cernobbio - Mazzini". The N11 line toward Sagnino stops at "Pontile Tavernola", from where it is necessary to continue on foot toward the event venue. A ferry connection from Como to the Tavernola landing stage is also listed.
Summer timetables may differ at weekends and in the evening, so it is important to check the final departure toward Como before entering the concert. Returning by taxi or prearranged transport may be more practical after the program ends, when a larger number of people leave the location at the same time.
For arrival by car, the road route toward Cernobbio is used, including the "Lago di Como" exit from the A9/E35 motorway. Free and paid parking facilities are available in the surrounding area, and the Villa Erba multi-storey car park is located opposite the Ex-Galoppatoio area, along Via Regina. Parking spaces in Cernobbio may be under pressure during summer evenings and major events, so arriving without extra time is not a good plan.
A practical plan for the evening
- Check the timetable of the return bus, boat or train before arriving in Cernobbio.
- For navigation, use the full name "Ex-Galoppatoio di Villa Erba" and the address Largo Luchino Visconti 4.
- Allow additional time for traffic along the lake, parking and security checks.
- Bring light protection against changing weather, but check what may be brought into the venue before departure.
- Keep your ticket until you leave, as the festival rules permit re-entry with a wristband and a valid ticket.
Entry and venue rules
Lake Sound Park carries out inspections of bags and backpacks at the entrance. There is no cloakroom or storage area for large personal items, so arriving with minimal luggage is the simplest option. Bags and backpacks larger than 15 litres are not permitted. Suitcases, helmets, professional recording equipment, drones, laser pointers, selfie sticks, portable speakers and other items that may interfere with safety or the audience's view are also prohibited.
Drinks in cans, glass bottles and metal bottles are not permitted. Plastic bottles may have a maximum capacity of 0.5 litres and must be without caps. Outside food and drink are generally not allowed, while food and beverage facilities are provided within the festival zone. The rules may be updated, so they should be checked again immediately before travelling.
The concert is outdoors. In the event of rain, the program will proceed according to festival rules unless weather conditions become unsafe. Comfortable footwear and clothing suited to the evening temperature are therefore more practical choices than formal attire. Umbrellas with sharp tips are not permitted, so a light raincoat is a safer option if the forecast is unstable.
The entrance opening time, performance duration, possible supporting act and detailed evening schedule are not listed in currently available announcements. The most reliable approach is to follow the organiser's updates in the days before the concert and arrive early enough that entrance checks do not become part of the first song.
Cernobbio before and after the concert
Cernobbio is a lakeside town with a short waterfront promenade, historic villas and views toward the hills enclosing the western shore of Lake Como. For an earlier arrival, the centre is compact enough for a walk and a break before the concert. Traffic along the lake can be slow in summer, so it is better to plan time in the town than to try to arrive immediately before the start.
Morrissey's Cernobbio date falls between a performance in Ljubljana and a concert in Asti two days later. This places it within a clearly defined Mediterranean segment of the European tour, following Scandinavian, German, Polish and Hungarian stops. For audiences in northern Italy and neighbouring countries, it is a rare opportunity to hear him in an open-air venue by the lake rather than in a large indoor arena.
Tickets for this event are in demand. For a more relaxed arrival, the most important things are to arrange transport in advance, check the rules on permitted items and leave enough time to enter the Ex-Galoppatoio before 9:00 p.m.
Sources:
- Morrissey Central - European tour schedule and confirmation of the date at Villa Erba.
- Warner Records Press - information about the album "Make-Up Is a Lie", its release date, producer, collaborators and track listing.
- Setlist.fm - reported set list from the Berlin concert on July 7, 2026, and the distribution of songs by album.
- Lake Sound Park - festival program, location, arrival information, parking and entry rules.
- Villa Erba - description of the Ex-Galoppatoio, the complex, the park and the address.
- Città di Cernobbio and ASF Autolinee - local information about parking and summer public transport services.