RIYL: Iron and Wine, Chad VanGaalen, Fleet Foxes, Andrew Bird, M. Ward
On his second album recording as Father John Misty, prolific singer songwriter J. Tillman gets weirder and wilder, trading sparse folk for orchestration, beats and decadent lyrics and going down an indie-rock rabbit hole of sorts. After releasing 8 solo albums in 7 years and playing drums for Fleet Foxes between 2008 and early 2012, Tillman signed with Sub-Pop and took on the moniker Father John Misty on his last LP Fear Fun. In interviews, Tillman has spoken bluntly about becoming incredibly dissatisfied with his earlier “wound-licking” music and experiencing a liberating catharsis that led to his more recent releases.
On I Love You, Honeybear, the line between Father John Misty and Tillman blurs considerably, with scenes of sex, drugs, and disillusionment flying by amidst slower, more earnest numbers. The songwriting is in many cases excellent and the arrangements are refreshingly original, making for a catchy and engaging listen from start to finish. Tillman doesn’t just bare his soul lyrically, he excoriates himself and takes the world down with him, but his sugary vocals and enduring love for his wife Emma serve as a strong enough counterbalance to keep things from getting intolerably dour.
The title track stirs together honky-tonk piano, acoustic guitar and rousing strings as Tillman vividly juxtaposes bedroom scenes with his wife against catastrophic world events. “..We’re naked, getting high on the mattress/ while the global market crashes/ and death fills the streets” he sings. And if you don’t catch the dark humor in the chorus (“Everything is doomed, and nothing will be spared/ but, I love you, Honeybear”) then its possible Father John Misty might not be your cup of tea.
It does take some time to figure out whether Tillman is laughing at you or with you on highlights like “The Night Josh Tillman Came To Our Apt.” and the scathing “Bored In The USA”, but beneath the satire there are profound issues of identity, self-loathing and depression being dealt with throughout the album. On tracks where he totally drops his guard, like the late number “Holy Shit” and the album closer “I Went To The Store One Day”, the real J. Tillman shines through, and he’s someone with rare talent and courage that deserves to be heard.
