The fourth album from Josh Tillman under the moniker of Father John Misty is here, it’s short and sweet, and it’s an extended love letter to his wife and muse, Emma.
Written over a six week period when his life apparently blew up and he was living in a hotel “for a couple of months” we can hear Tillman realising his deep need for his partner as God’s Favourite Customer develops – it’s probably the most introspective release we’ve been given from the mind of Father John Misty.
Produced once again with Jonathan Wilson, Tillman described God’s Favourite Customer last year to Uncut as “the real I Love You, Honeybear but without the cynicism” and you can hear that coming through on tracks like ‘Please Don’t Die’, ‘Disappointing Diamonds Are The Rarest Of Them All’ and ‘The Palace’. Tillman laments over an aching heart through tracks that seem to scrape away the deeply ironic, sarcastic, and holier-than-thou persona he’s adopted over the years as Father John Misty; one that the public was never sure was an elaborate performance art piece or if he really was just an insufferable twat.
Oh and, honey, I’m worried ’bout you
You’re too much to lose
You’re all that I have
Instrumentally, God’s Favourite Customer harks back to Tillman’s earlier work as Misty, a collection of works that ebb and flow, with some tracks bursting out of the gates with feeling, and others that trundle along with consistent rhythms, like the title track, ‘God’s Favourite Customer’. Tracks are stripped right back to Tillman and a piano, and others follow an imagined conversation between Tillman and the hotel’s concierge, like ‘Mr Tillman’.
Speaking of, ‘Mr Tillman’ was the album’s first single and if the track’s official video clip is anything to go by, Tillman’s state of mind while he was cooped up in that hotel for six weeks had him falling deep down the rabbit hole that is his own mind.
An album that grows, and a step away from the deeply-performative moniker, God’s Favourite Customer gets a 4 out of 5 from me.
