Our Interview with Father John Misty

It's no secret now. We fucking love Father John Misty's new album Fear Fun. It's one of those albums where you can't pick out a favorite song because it changes weekly. Sometimes daily. Father John Misty is the moniker of Josh Tillman and I'd love to give you a description of his sound through comparison, via a game of "sloppy influence identification". but as you'll read below, that'd earn me a slap across the face.

... and he might shove something in my mouth.

So, I won't go there.

Josh is one of the most unique and eccentric people in music today. One of the few artists who is comfortable in his own skin and unafraid to speak his mind. What you see is what you get. Fear Fun is appealing because it is indicative of his personality; it has no inhibitions, it is honest, sarcastic and fun.

Needless to say I was ecstatic for the opportunity to interview Josh over the phone. He gave me a call on Monday while driving his van and sipping on a smoothie. We discussed a plethora of topics that include: whiskey, physics, neck sweat, dancing, man-scapping and much, much more.

*I also need to give a shout out to his glint addicted manager Laurel for setting up this whole thing. Thanks Laurel; you are my favsies.

Father John Misty Interview GO:

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SYFFAL: First off, I need to tell you that many of the Syffal staff are obsessed with Fear fun.

Father John Misty: Nice

SYFFAL: It has taken over our brains. We see your face in our cereal and your cock in the clouds. We love it. So, THANK YOU for that.

Father John Misty: Good. I'm truly my best in the minds of other people.

SYFFAL: Well you are unbelievable in our minds.

Father John Misty: Great, I love it.

SYFFAL: Have you had experience with any albums that affect you in that way?... ones that you just can't stop listening to?

Father John Misty: I don't know. I really don't listen to that much music. I certainly don't listen to any new music, but that's just more out of laziness than principle. Umm..yea, a LOT of my laziness can be misconstrued as principle. Let me think... 'On The Beach' by Neil Young has pretty much been stuck in my head to the point of obsession for 10 years.

SYFFAL: Great album. Really quickly, I'd like to jump in and give a background to our readers. You are Josh Tillman and you previously released albums as J. Tillamn and you were the former drummer of Fleet Foxes. First off, How muscular are Robin Pecknold's pecs?

Father John Misty: How muscular are Robin Pecknold's pecs?

SYFFAL: Yes

Father John Misty: I'd say that they're more 'nold' than muscular. Yeah, they are very 'nold'.

SYFFAL: (laugh) do you think that you could bench more than him?

Father John Misty: I mean, I don't know. I haven't seen him in a while. I'm not sure what his physique is currently like. I think we'll have to set up some sort of log lifting competition.

SYFFAL: Sounds like a plan. Now that I've gotten that off my chest I was wondering if you could explain who Father John Misty is. What is the story behind his creation?

Father John Misty: Well, you are just making all kinds of assumptions. He is not really a person.

SYFFAL: Is it you? But just under a different name?

Father John Misty: No, it's just a name that I came up with because I was kinda sick of the 'J. Tillman' thing; it was just a very different form of expression. Father John Misty was really just this name that came to me while we were wrapping up the album. Everything was in the can and I had to just come up with this very pragmatic, non-artistic decision (in my mind) on the name. Really, it's just branding.

SYFFAL: Is the story behind the lyrics more of an auto-biography? Are you writing about yourself or is it a figment of your imagination?

Father John Misty: Yeah. Everything is deeply personal, but it's kinda of a gag, you know? The gag is, if you listen to the album, it's gotta be about me. It is pretty explicitly about me. It's really just confusing. But that was the idea... to confuse people. And then I just sit back and laugh as people try to figure it out.

SYFFAL: (laughs) like me?

Father John Misty: Yeah, Father John Misty is not anything. It's just a name for me to slap on the cover of my album.

SYFFAL: Well, is it safe to say that you are booze drinking male slut who likes to be punched in the face and called Nancy?

Father John Misty: Sure. It'd be fair to say that.

SYFFAL: Speaking of booze drinking, I need to ask you this: You did a fake commercial for Suntory Whiskey on YouTube.

Father John Misty: (laughs)

SYFFAL: Other that Suntory Whiskey on fake rocks, what is your favorite whiskey and how do you prefer it? And what's the story behind that YouTube video anyway? That was awesome... I loved it.

Father John Misty: Thanks man. I like Basil Hayden a lot and lately I've been... .(slurp) sorry I'm drinking a smoothy right now.

SYFFAL: Continue...

Father John Misty: Yeah, Lately I've been taking it as a single with some soda water and some bitters. If not, I fly through doubles and I end up getting pretty ripped. So... (pause)

SYFFAL: So soda water kinda breaks it up and makes you last longer...

Father John Misty: Well, on tour it is just way too easy and to get really drunk. All that you have to do is play the show and sign some things; I can do that when I'm completely obliterated. But at home, going out and drinking means talking to other human beings. So getting super drunk is not conducive to that. So... yeah... a little soda water... a little bitters helps me pace it a little bit more evenly.

SYFFAL: Yeah, I've been digging the soda water lately. Have you seen that Soda Stream machine that allows you to make your own sparkling water?

Father John Misty: That sounds like way too much work. I'd probably be just way to drunk to make my own soda water.

SYFFAL: (laughs) Well it makes two bottles at a time so you can just make some in advance to prepare for the evening.

Father John Misty: It doesn't go flat?

SYFFAL: No, I mean, unless it isn't in the fridge for, like, dayyyyys.

Father John Misty: But at some point nature runs it's course and it will go flat, I imagine... As long as the planet's physics are still in affect.

SYFFAL: (laughs) yeah.

Father John Misty: I'm going to drive off this bridge in my van and see if the laws of physics are in tact... I'm curious. So, hold on a second.

SYFFAL: Okay, let me know what happens.

Father John Misty: I'm dead. I died... the laws of physics are still in affect.

SYFFAL: Fuck the laws of physics.

Father John Misty: FUCK PHYSICS!... you can put that on my gravestone.

SYFFAL: So what is the story behind the Suntory Whiskey video then?

Father John Misty: It's just something that my buddy asked me to do. My friend Brian is a director. It's basically in tribute to the Sammy Davis Jr. Suntory Whiskey ads where he scats and bee-bops his way through making a drink. So, my friend Brian asked me if I could do that. It was just... you know... one very special afternoon in my life.

SYFFAL: Well, it was great

Father John Misty: Thank you. I'm actually pretty proud of that. That may be the thing I'm most proud of. I actually had a meeting about doing a little acting this morning.

SYFFAL: Now that you are in Hollywood...

Father John Misty: Yeah, It's funny. Here, it's sorta just inevitable. Especially if you put yourself out in the way that I do.

SYFFAL: So what type of acting do you plan on doing? What was this meeting for?

Father John Misty: That was for a TV show that is deeply obscured... sort of Twin Peaks-esque. And I have a few other things that I don't think I'm really at liberty to talk about. I'm really just trying to work my way into a profession where I don't have to lug any gear around... .and acting requires no gear.

SYFFAL: You seem to be a natural for improvisation. I've heard you say that you sometimes think your audience goes to a show to hear what you are saying in between songs rather than the actual songs.

Father John Misty: Right. I think that there is something more innately interesting about that because it's something that only a [performer] can do [to make them selves unique]. It is interesting. When you write songs or play songs some people think that your music is a game of sloppy influence or something. They'll try and pinpoint the inspiration and say 'ohhh, I hear some of this' and then they'll attach some ridiculous made-up genre names to it.

BUT you can't really classify someone's personality in the same quantifiable way. So I think in some way that it [talking to the crowd in between songs} is still magical and fascinating to people.

SYFFAL: Yeah, it makes your show unique and fun and allows you to show some personality. Well, I plan to go to one of your shows in Chicago at Schuba's on July 14th, but I'm going to be there for everything. I want to see you talk, I want to see you sing, and most importantly, I want to see you dance.

Father John Misty: Oh, hell yeah.

SYFFAL: So I was wondering, who most inspired your dance moves? Would you say it is more Mic Jagger or more Carlton Banks?

Father John Misty: Ummmm, I feel it's more like a cartoon.

SYFFAL: It's definitely unique and I love it. (see Josh dance below)

Father John Misty: Yeah, it's really an extension of my self. I gesture. Like when I talk, I'm kind of a wild gesturer. Even right now as I say this sentence, I'm punctuating it with gestures. The dancing thing is really an extension of that. It's all kind of a sub text for the lyrics.

Dancing I think is really hard for people to get their heads around. They wonder why someone does it. Especially someone who is in my position, but I've been dancing like that for years. Anybody who has known me has seen me dance like that for years. I do it anytime I get the opportunity to do so... which is way too often. (laughs)

SYFFAL: (laughs) when you consume too much Basil Hayden and soda water.

Father John Misty: Yeah, when I get that home-made soda water in me.

SYFFAL: Oh, just wait. Just wait until you try out the Soda Stream

Father John Misty: (laughs) ... juuuuust wait. I dance very much in the spirit of 'fuck it'. You know?... and Fuck your expectations... .and Fuck your propriety ... .and your fucking pretense too. I don't know. It's really that I'm not interested into catering to taste.

SYFFAL: ...or what people think you are supposed to be. Or how they think you are supposed to act.

Father John Misty: Right. There really is this kind of puritanical culture around indie rock music... as much as I hate using that phrase. When I hear disparaging comments about the dancing it's usually these very didactic statements like 'oh, he's so full of himself.' But, DUDE I'm a fuckin' rocker. What the Fuck do you think?

Everybody has this idea that you are supposed to get up there and be humble, grateful and act uncomfortable because everyone is supposed to be uncomfortable. Whatever. To me there is just a lot of vanity in that type of thinking. Everything is too much of a joke for me to take seriously in that way. I mean, It's hard to people to understand... that I take it all quite seriously but that's just who I am. And if that's who I am... and that's how I feel... and if I'm inspired to move around... then I'm obligated to that.

Anything other than that is insincerity. And really, that is some other song and dance... when you are trying to portray this other version of yourself that must be respected. I'm just not into that.

SYFFAL: (pause) I dig it.

Father John Misty: I'm rambling

SYFFAL: (laughs) You nailed it though. While I love indie music, fans of it are getting a little too pretentious and snobby...

Father John Misty: Isn't it crazy? It's crazy that we live in a time where if you sing and dance then you are some kind of novelty.

SYFFAL: Yeah, you are supposed to up there gazing at your shoes.

Father John Misty: What the fuck? Really? A dude singing and dancing is a novelty? It's some kind of oddity. It's really interesting.

SYFFAL: Well, hey, I'm on your side.

Father John Misty: It's like singing and dancing must be left to the people with no artistic merit.

SYFFAL: What do you say we talk about the long hair that you cut off in the video for 'Nancy From Now On?' Did you donate any of your hair to 'Locks of Love'? You should have totally done that.

Father John Misty: Ohhh, no.

SYFFAL: I guess that is probably best because the wigs they made would most likely not pass drug test. You'd get some poor little girl in trouble.

Father John Misty: Yeah, that's what I'm saying. There is a lot of crazy shit in that hair.

SYFFAL: Now that your hair and beard are gone do you feel that you can run faster? Have a little less neck sweat? Feel a lot better?

Father John Misty: My neck is just dry as a bone. It's wonderful. The beard is actually back in full effect.

SYFFAL: Well, not as long as before, is it?

Father John Misty: It's getting there. But that is also just purely out of laziness. But I am really enjoying the short hair. I'll say that.

SYFFAL: Now that you are well groomed up top, do you feel the need to be well groomed down under? Do you have some man-scapping going on? Upside down triangles? Stars?

Father John Misty: My pubic hair naturally grows in the shape of a strawberry. A precious little strawberry. So, I actually don't have to do any man-scapping. And my shoulder hair only grows in lightning bolts. I'm lucky in that way.

(as I listen back to the recording... I'm pretty sure he takes a hit from a joint right here)

SYFFAL: (laughs) Well, I told you we are obsessed. So when we look up in the clouds and see your cock we'll know how accurate the shape is. I guess I'll now be looking for a strawberry at the base of it.

Father John Misty: That is truly the most disgusting image I could have possibly come up with.

SYFFAL: (laughing) A strawberry. With a little green leaf too?

Father John Misty: Yeah. Jesus Christ. With a little lady bug on it. (laughs)

SYFFAL: No. No lady bugs.

Father John Misty: No. No thank you.

SYFFAL: Lastly, I mentioned that I'm going to see you in Chicago. I have a Syffal t-shirt and I was wondering if you could wear it on stage or at least use it as a cum rag later that night, but all that I ask is that you accept it and say hi to me.

Father John Misty: Okay. It's on dude. So, you want me to cum on you. Sorry, I wasn't listening. You want me to cum on you at the show in Chicago? That's the plan?

SYFFAL: Wait, you are putting words in my mouth. I didn't say that I'd be wearing the t-shit.

Father John Misty: That's not all I'll be putting in your mouth in Chicago. Hahaha. AHHHH. Alright. So is that a wrap?

SYFFAL: That is a wrap. I appreciate it.

Father John Misty: Now that I'm acting I like to use terminology like that to show how professional I am.

SYFFAL: (laughs) Well, thank you for your time. I'll see you in Chicago.

Father John Misty: Alright, see you man. Thanks.