As I sat down to write this feature, Bob Dylan looked up at me from the cover of the most recent issue of Rolling Stone that sat on my coffee table. He clearly approved of what Father John Misty was belting through my laptop’s speakers. I think I may have even seen him nod when I found a quote from Father John himself about the creation of his first album, Fear Fun, that read: “I got into my van with enough mushrooms to choke a horse and started driving down the coast with nowhere to go.”
Father John Misty is a force to be reckoned with on “Bored in the USA,” a single off his upcoming album, I Love You, Honeybear, due February 10 on Sub Pop. He’s perfected a mournful warble and a gorgeous falsetto that give life to lyrics portraying his frustration with modern day America, cuttingly ironic and bursting at the seams with social commentary. From the first moments of dissonant piano music, you can tell that this song is somehow both a familiar and incredibly unique entry into the American folk music cannon. So really, can you blame Mr. Dylan for his admiration?