Father John Misty (J. Tillman) does Letterman

Wow.  I didn't see this coming.  My old favorite solo singer-songwriter, J. Tillman (also former drummer from Fleet Foxes) is really pushing the PR campaign with his new project, Father John Misty.  The shimmy shimmy swagger on stage is a bit off-putting though.

Father John Misty (J. Tillman) video - Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings

 J. Tillman's (former Fleet Foxes drummer) new solo venture, Father John Misty has put out a video for the first single, Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings, starring your favorite malcontent from Parks & Rec, Aubrey Plaza.

The full-length, Fear Fun, will be out May 1 on Sub Pop

Father John Misty - Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings from thatgo on Vimeo.

J. Tillman (of Fleet Foxes) signs to Sub Pop as Father John Misty

Fear Fun will be out May 1 on Sub Pop

For your email address, get a sneak peak with the surprisingly noisy "Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings."

 

You can also listen to the track and its new video over at Entertainment Weekly, where Parks and Recreation's Aubrey Plaza goes nuts. 

Album Review - J. Tillman, Singing Ax

 

Followers will know that I have been just nuts about the last few J. Tillman records (2 of them last year).  Thus, it was with great excitement that I heard he is putting out another on already.  It is available now on Western Vinyl - for sale on iTunes, amazon, emusic, etc . . .

Here are my thoughts.  I divide Tillman's discography into 2 phases.  Tillman's first 3 LPs, I Will Return, Long May you Run and Cancer and Delirium were sparsely beautiful, but quite lo-fi.  For many people, the scratch of low quality recordings won't allow them to really appreciate the great songs that are hiding underneath on those records.  The most recent 3 LPs, Minor Works, Vacilando Territory Blues and Year in the Kingdom, brought both better production value AND a much richer sound with increased instrumentation.  Singing Ax is a hybrid of these two phases.

Instrumentation is SPARSE.  Almost nothing there.  In this regard, it is much like his first releases.  Production value, however, is much improved - like his more recent releases.  So, if you like "Dry" folk with great songwriting and lyrics, this will be a great record for you.  I will likely gravitate back towards the LPs with fuller instrumentation, but Tillman hasn't lost me here.  I am still fully in the fan camp.

And, as long as he keeps on cranking out this high volume of records - I will definitely stay a fan.  There is something to be said for a guy that writes songs, and just records and releases them - instead of waiting to release every 2-3 years.  I know some bands are constricted by record companies on how often they release so its not their fault . . . but I really commend Tillman on this.

Make music, make it often.

Sample songs

J. Tillman - Diamondback [mp3]
J. Tillman - Three Sisters [mp3]

Song du Jour Nr. 075

Howling Light [mp3]

by
J. Tillman
from

Year in the Kingdom
[2009]

Song du Jour Nr. 074

Crosswinds
[download mp3]

by

J. Tillman

from

Year in the Kingdom
[2009]

Song du Jour Nr. 073

Though I have Wronged You
[download mp3]

and

Earthly Bodies
[download mp3]

by

J. Tillman

from


Year in the Kingdom

Song du Jour Nr. 072

No Occasion [mp3]

by

J. Tillman

from

Vacilando Territory Blues
[2009]

Song du Jour Nr. 071

Laborless Land [mp3]

by

J. Tillman

from

Vacilando Territory Blues
[2009]

Song du Jour Nr. 070

Crooked Roof [mp3]

by

J. Tillman

from

Minor Works
[2006]

Song du Jour Nr. 069

Darling Night [mp3]

by

J. Tillman

from

Minor Works
[2006]

Song du Jour Nr. 068

Lilac Hem [mp3]

by

J. Tillman

from

I Will Return
[2005]

Song du Jour Nr. 067

Evans and Fall [mp3]

by 

J. Tillman

from

Cancer and Delirium
[2007]

J. Tillman songs on their way

For the next bit our Song du Jour mp3 series will feature J. Tillman.  Also drummer for Fleet Foxes, he has been putting out some phenomenal solo singer-songwriter material since 2005.

Enjoy.

Free Music Contest

Free Music Contest!!!

In the recent past, I have acquired a few free digital downloads that accompanied various vinyl records I have purchased.  For most of these, I already owned a digital copy, and my free digital downloaded zip files have been sitting on my computer, waiting for a home.  So, I'm going to give them away as part of a contest.

The Goods:

J. Tillman - A Year in the Kingdom [2009]

Tied for my #1 of the album last year.  Read my review here.

Damien Jurado - Caught in the Trees [2008]

 #39 on my top albums of the decade list . . . probably should have been a LOT higher.

The Format - Dog Problems [2006]

#8 on my top albums of the decade list.  The album release show in Phoenix was also one of my favorite concerts of all time.

The Rules:

1. Post a promotion for this blog on your blog, myspace, facebook or other internet site.

2. Send me an email with the link to your post (musicsnobsanonymous[at]gmail.com).

3. In about a month, I will randomly select a winner who will receive a zip file of ONE of these albums (your choice).

4. From there, the process will be repeated for the remaining albums.

5. This is a free and legal copy of the album, downloaded legally, never used by me and yours to keep.

Please spread the word about the contest and the blog!

Song du Jour Nr. 039

Crosswinds
[download mp3]

by

J. Tillman

from

Year in the Kingdom
[2009]

Song du Jour Nr. 023

Though I have Wronged You
[download mp3]

and

Earthly Bodies
[download mp3]

by

J. Tillman

from


Year in the Kingdom

Stream J. Tillman live set + interview!

Phenomenal 30 minute set + interview by J. Tillman.

wow.

View it HERE at rockfeedback.com

Best Albums of 2009: September Edition

Best Albums of 2009

September Edition (a bit late, sorry)

Rather than compiling a huge list at the end of the year, not having enough time to do a good job, and simply throwing something together really fast, I'm going to start compiling my thoughts on albums over the whole year - month by month. Some of these may have actually been released earlier in the year, but are in this months set because this is when I got my hands on them.

1.
J. Tillman
Year in the Kingdom


Two LPs in one year - not too shabby. Tillman's 2nd offering of 2009 is hands down, one of the best indie-acoustic-folk releases in a long time, if not ever. It features his familiar dark, brooding, mellow vocals, quiet guitar strumming, and richly overlain harmonized oooings and aaahings in the background. There are some great string arrangements backing these tracks as well. And, it appears that Tillman has discovered the dulcimer, which adds a unique new texture to his music -giving Year in the Kingdom a distinct feel. Top Tracks are all of them. Seriously. Try these out though: Though I have Wronged You [download mp3] and Earthly Bodies [download mp3] via stereogum.

2.
Joshua James
Build Me This


I wrote quite a lengty review on this album last month as a stand-alone review. It is quite lengthy, so I'll just direct you there. On that review I had originally posted a sample mp3 of Coal War - the albums opening track. Joshua had given me express written permisison to do so, but his record label disagreed and made blogger disable the post TWICE. I took the mp3 down immediately, but they felt it necessary to flag it for abuse a 2nd time (even though the link was gone). Bummer.


3.
Owen
New Leaves


Mike Kinsella's now multi-year solo project, Owen, simply does not disappoint. I can't get enough of his brand of indie-acoustic slowjam! New Leaves is marked by his now very well established noodly acoustic guitar tracking, oft-hesitant vocals, painful lyrics and interspersed lead electric guitar. Reportedly, this album still contains some material recorded in his mother's basement - as per tradition - but clearly features a more well-developed writing and production process than previous releases. It follows in the footsteps of "At Home with Owen" in this regard. Great strings and other backing instrumentaiton abound. Top tracks include New Leaves and A Trenchant Critique [download mp3].


4.
A.A. Bondy
When the Devil's Loose

I have just recently gotten into A.A. Bondy. The new album is good, but some of the alt-county production turned me off. I think I liked his 2007 American Hearts a lot more. I do appreciate his gravely vox though. Mmm Mmm. Loves me some good 'ol fashioned gravely vox!


5.
Volcano Choir
Unmap


I have been a fan of Pele, and their later reincarnaiton as Collections of Colonies of Bees for quite a while. Avant-garde, experimental, noodly-guitar rock. When I heard they teamed up with Bon Iver frontman Justin Vernon to form Volcano Choir, I was intruiged. I'm not a huge bon Iver fan, but his falsetto vox prove a great addition to the experimental Wisconsinites' sound. In deed, many of the lyrics are indiscernable anyways, and his voice serves as another layer of instrumentation. Very nicely done boys. Top tracks include Island, IS [download mp3] and Still.


6.
Grand Archives
Keep in Mind Frankenstein


Grand Archives' 2008 self-titled LP still stands as one of my favorites. It set the standard pretty high for their sophomore release. Even with mediocre expectations, however, Keep in Mind Frankenstein is disappointing. There are a few good tracks, but much of the album is simply boring. Dig That Crazy Grave is a travesty of alt-country devolution/digression. According to their label profile at subpop.com, they originally recorded a much more raucous album, but scrapped it, wrote this one on the spot, and recorded it. I think I would like to hear the more raucous one. The redeemable tracks are Topsy's Revenge, Silver among the Gold [download mp3] and Witchy Park/Tomorrow Will.
















Running LP List

1. J. Tillman - Year in the Kingdom (September)
   
2. Joshua James - Build me This (September)
   
3. J. Tillman - Vacilando Territory Blues (January)
   
4. Brendan Benson - My Old Familiar Friend (August)
   
5. fun. - Aim and Ignite (August)
   
6. Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix (May)
7. Shark Speed - Sea Sick Music (April)
8. Owen - New Leaves (September)
   
9. Say Hi - Oohs & Aahs (February)
10. Andrew Bird - Noble Beast (January)
11. Iron & Wine - Around the Well (May)
12. David Bazan - Curse Your Branches (August)
    
13. Before Braille - Spring Cleaning (June + July)
14. Art for Starters - Drugs Made / Drugs Ruined (April)
    
15. The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love (March)
16. Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band - Outer South (May)
    
17. Fruit Bats - The Ruminant Band (August)
    
18. The Great Lake Swimmers - Lost Channels (March)
19. A.A. Bondy - When the Devil's Loose (September)
20. Volcano Choir - Unmap (September)
    
21. Mos Def - The Ecstatic (June + July)
    
22. Dent May and his Magnificent Ukuele - The Good Feeling Music of Dent May (March)
23. Jeremy Enigk - OK Bear (May)
24. Coconut Records - Davy (January)
25. Jimmy Eat World - Clarity Live (April)
    
26. Iain Archer - To the Pine Roots (April)
    
27. The Appleseed Cast - Sagarmatha (February)
28. John Vanderslice - Romanian Names (May)
    
29. Peter, Bjorn and John - Living Thing (March)
30. Jonsi and Alex - Rice Boy Sleeps (June + July)
    
31. Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest (May)
32. Grand Archives - Keep in Mind Frankenstein (September)
    
33. Lateef the Truth Speaker - Truth is Love Mixtape (April)
    
34. Vetiver - Tight Knit (March)
35. General Elektriks - Good City for Dreamers (February)
36. Dark was the Night compilation (April)
    
37. Ben Kweller - Changing Horses (January)

Running EP List

1. Common Market - The Winter's End (March)
2. Death Cab for Cutie - Open Door (March)
3. Owen - The Seaside (August)
   
4. Joshua James - Sing Songs (May)
   
5. Andrew Bird - Fitz and the Dizzyspells (August)
   
6. The Mountain Goats and John Vanderslice - Moon Colony Blood Bath (April)
7. Blue Scholars - OOF! (August)

J. Tillman - Though I have Wronged You (new song)

Via stereogum. Actually not my favorite track off the new album, but a great teaser!

J. Tillman - Though I have Wronged You [download mp3] from Year in the Kingdom (out Sept. 22)

Also enjoy
Earthly Bodies [download mp3] via stereogum