New Father John Misty Album in February

I am very excited by the idea of a new Father John Misty album. I spent most of 2012 and 2013 obsessing over Fear Fun after being turned on to him by my sister-in-law. She had heard the song he did with Phosphorescent on the Aquarium Drunkard satellite radio show. I got into the album and finally saw him live at Lollapalooza where he stole the show and blew my mind. It was only then that I dug hard into the FJM mythology, finally catching up on the major Magnet profile and picking up the record on vinyl so I could read his self-consciously ridiculous “novel” that was included in the liner notes.

So yeah, I’m a total fanboy. And now there’s a new song from I Love You, Honeybear, his new Jonathan Wilson-produced album due February 10, 2015 on Sub Pop. And with the announcement of the album and tour, there’s also a new 4,000-word bio/listening guide.

Video: Father John Misty – “Bored in the USA” on David Letterman

The performance makes me a little nervous that his sense of humor has gotten pissier and more darkly sarcastic. Gone are the swoon-worthy dance moves, dismissed last year as “the demonic clown thing that I’d been doing,” replaced with an uncomfortable laugh track. He’s still clearly “fucking with artifice” but now I’m afraid he might be going too negative. What the world does not need right now is another fucking bummer.

If you’re unfamiliar with the previous work of Father John Misty, you’re lucky because he has made five official videos from the album’s twelve tracks.

Video: Father John Misty – “Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings”