Father John Misty

'Fear Fun' (album stream)

BY Alex HudsonPublished Apr 24, 2012

Having previously released solo albums as J. Tillman and been a member of Fleet Foxes, songwriter Josh Tillman has now rebranded himself as Father John Misty and, on May 1, will release the album Fear Fun through Sub Pop. Before the album officially arrives on shelves, though, you can stream the whole thing at Exclaim.ca.

So why did Tillman decide to launch an entire new project? According to a press release, "During the summer of 2011, Joshua Tillman left Seattle to live in his van for two months, writing a novel under the influence of fungi and suddenly began to write songs under the name of Father John Misty."

The album was mixed by Phil Ek, the indie rock studio guru who has worked with bands like Fleet Foxes, Built to Spill and the Shins, and the songs were laid down in Los Angeles with Jonathan Wilson (Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Jonathan Rice).

Fear Fun shows that, despite exiting Fleet Foxes, Tillman still hasn't lost his affection for folksy, acoustic sounds. He gives this rootsy style a faint psychedelic twist -- something that might be thanks to the fungi that inspired the album.

Listen to the album below, and check out Father John Misty's North America tour dates (including a stop in Toronto) here.

UPDATE: This stream was available for one week only and is no longer available.

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