REVIEW #1: 80/100

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Father John Misty is a unique figure in the industry, one who simultaneously appeals to many demographics. Following his debut studio album detailing the turmoil of his own marriage, he takes a more insightful approach into society as a whole on this record. Preceded by the hit single Back Woods, the 4 track EP is certainly setting itself up for an interesting listen!

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Starting off with Back Woods, the track is a very grand opening to the EP. Starting off quite mellow, it quickly builds up into a powerful opening track. Lyrically, the song is difficult to fault. The opening lines feel a little clunky, but the rest of it is written really strongly! I love the constant use of questions throughout it that really highlights Misty’s uncertainty of the world. The vocal layerings as well are immaculate! Misplaced Faith begins and, honestly, it sounds like a very toned down version of Back Woods. With how good the last track was, expectations are high! Lyrically, this song has it’s ups and downs. “Money, power, influence, the truth is not important” is one of my favourite lines on the project, but the line about “my post just went viral” feels a little too on the nose for me. Still, Misty’s ability to build the song to the powerful ending is unmatched and it becomes a massive highlight of the song. One of my only complaints about the song is that it feels rather short, I think it could’ve been even better if it had a little more time to say what it needed to say.

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Moving onto Lie, this song immediately hits you like a truck! I’ve spoken about how Misty builds a song up, but there’s none of that here. The song starts on a high from the very start and continues throughout. Still, I think this may be the only low on the album so far. Even saying that is a stretch because it’s still a solid song but, to me, it doesn’t quite live up to the other tracks on the album. The production is by far the highlight, with the lyrics feeling a little flat compared to some of the other tracks. Still, the second to last verse is another favourite of mine! I think Misty’s lyricism really shines in these moments when he’s reflecting on the world around him. Again, the song feels a little short and is a lot more noticeable here than in Misplaced Faith. It’s not a bad song by any means, but it struggles to shine among some of these other tracks! Now, we get onto probably the highlight of the album, Swallow. This song is immaculate honestly, I can’t fault it. It feels like a perfect culmination of all the best parts of every song before. Strong, consistent production, impactful and reflective lyricism, catchy as hell! Easily Father John Misty at his best. There’s not a better, more powerful note he could’ve ended on.

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Overall, this is an incredibly solid project from the GRAMMY winning star. He effectively tackles a subject matter that many artists stumble upon. There are moments that feel a bit on the nose, moments that feel as though tracks don’t live up to their full potential, but the certainly don’t detract from the strong EP Misty has put together. From Can I Please You, Lover? to this, it’s interesting to see where this star will go next.

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REVIEW #2: 77/100

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Not even a year after the release of his album, “Can I Please You Lover?”, Father John Misty drops a surprise four track EP. Following a busy year, where the singer has toured the United States, sold millions of records and even went on to get some awards, this release feels like a full circle moment for Misty. A sonic departure from his 2020-released album, the EP’s has a humorous reference to The Simpsons, poking fun at the artist’s age and disconnect with social media and society’s obsession with it nowadays. The humour is found even in some of the lyrics, as the artist paints a rather pessimistic and bored look at the modern world and its obsessions. Self-produced and self-written, it is obvious that this project came out of nowhere for both Tillman’s fanbase and the singer himself, as the songs have a raw, gritty sound to themselves, almost as if they were recorded by a band in the 90s in a garage. Which could be a bad thing for other projects, but this quality makes the songs and their messages shine through brighter than ever.

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Some grievances, though, are to be had with some of the lyrics. Although it is clear what the singer tried to say, some of the ways the message is conveyed can be rather cheesy and too much on the nose. On “Back Woods”, the line “So pretentious, so fucked up” interrupts the otherwise amazing flow of the song, while, on “Misplaced Faith”, most of the track feels too much like anger without pinpointing exactly what it is at. Government? Social media creators? Influencers? The 1%? On “Lie”, the first four lines are too obvious and feel just as superficial as the subjects it depicts. However, the overall production of the record is more than immaculate. It stands out among the avalanche of pop releases and feels like a breath of fresh air. While the last two tracks have a certain Nirvana-esque feeling above them, “Back Woods” is like an aggressive lovechild between Alice in Chains and The Chicks. The middle track, “Misplaced Faith”, goes as far as being a mix of all the aforementioned influences, with a tad of pop rock. To discuss the final track, “Swallow”, would be redundant as it would be the same thing said over and over: how amazing this song is. Although, at first glance, the lyrics seem to be repetitive, Misty uses this attribute to his advantage, as he seems to grow angrier and angrier after every repetition, as he lets it all out. Unlike other moments on the EP, the lyrics are not only subtle and clever, they merge with the production and form one of the best songs in the singer’s discography and even one of the best songs released this year.

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Undoubtedly, “Old Man Yells at Cloud” is not on the same level as “Can I Please You, Lover?”, but it is a nice departure from the overall landscape of music at the moment. While others chose to pay tribute to 80s synthwave, Father John Misty moved on from that and went on to celebrate one of the most influential, yet less talked about genres of music: grunge. While others chose to sleep in the comfort of a tribute to days that are long gone, Father John Misty took a genre and made it his own with no hesitation. Despite some lyrical mishaps here and there, one can only hope (even ask of the singer) that this small project can develop into a full-fledged & more focused follow-up to “Lover”.

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Highlights: Back Woods, Lie, Swallow

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REVIEW #2: 93/100

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Father John Misty came from nowhere to be damn near everywhere. With roots firmly planted as an indie powerhouse, he made the big move to a major label and has since never looked back. The release of his acclaimed album “Can I Please You Lover?’ earlier this year grew his profile to a quite respectable size and it makes sense why he was ready to ride that wave, but the announcement of the project managed to be a surprise despite the release of it’s lead single under our noses. The project is brief, only reaching four songs, but he makes the most of the time, delving into serious topics with a perspective missing from most attempts at such a feat. 

 

The project opens with it’s lead “Back Woods” and the song still hits the way it did upon it’s release as a single. The song acts as a critique (the first of many) of the human race and our uncanny ability to get ourselves into a mess. The song also acts as the proper introduction to the musical evolution that Misty shows on the project. Blending influences of the grunge and alt rock movements of the 90s, the sound is angrier and grittier and plays to the song and indeed the project’s favor. The song is the natural single from the project, but it should also be noted that it’s probably it’s weakest offering overall which is no slight to the song itself as it’s genuinely fantastic, it’s just that the three songs that follow are incredible. The second track, “Misplaced Faith”, is in a tie for the project’s strongest track.While the project in general is aimed at the world, this song feels particularly relevant to the United States considering the year that’s been had in the country. Taking a jab at the obsession with immaterial, unimportant things such as status and social media acclaim, Misty’s point is unmissable. The production is more sparse when compared to the opener, but it acts as a genuinely perfect accompaniment to this song. It’s relative simplicity highlights the song’s overall point: more isn’t necessarily better and obsession with something bombastic doesn’t necessarily end up in something notable. The song is genuinely phenomenal and would be a wonderful single choice in the future. 

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The second half of the tie for best track is “Lie” which continues with the themes present in the previous track. Dealing with the false lives that people portray online and on television, the critiques are once again scathing as they need to be. He doesn’t hold back lyrically and indeed provides some of the project’s most quotable lines (“Show off your perfect life/It’s up for 24 hours/But you cry all night” is perhaps the best single lyric he’s ever put out for us to hear). The production is once more strong and a bit heavier and busier than it’s predecessor but not so busy that things get lost. This song feels as if it did need more of the showmanship and Misty provided in spades. It’s another incredible song rounding off the superb duology of it and it’s predecessor. The final track “Swallow” is the most personal on the project in the sense that it feels like the only song which is performed from the perspective and in the shoes of the man himself. Sonically it’s got the crunchiest guitars and the most classic sound of the project. Lyrically, the song is as strong as the whole of the project, dealing in some genuinely existential stuff (as he’s been known to do). It may not be the absolute strongest track but it’s another worthy addition to the tracklist and is damn close to the perfection of the preceding two tracks. 

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And so comes the end of the next logical step for one of the most interesting new additions to the top 10. This project manages to be special for it’s uncanny ability to showcase songs that are notably cynical but not hateful. At no point does this feel mean spirited or unjustified. He isn’t lashing out for no reason and is making extremely valid points under the guise of sarcasm, dark humor, and clever wordplay. While Misty’s full length LP earlier in the year was a remarkable piece of work and genuinely one of the best projects of the year, it has to be said that this EP does manage to be the next step better. It’s limited scope allows a focus that’s so razor sharp that it could never really be replicated. It’s another stunning piece of evidence for Misty being one of the must watches of the current industry.