With his 2022 album, ‘Chloë and The Next 20th Century’, it appeared that Father John Misty was trying to dial down the ambiguous signals that had permeated his earlier releases. Its mixture of golden era Hollywood and cruise ship opulence signified an artist happy to embrace the mainstream, an arena for which his outstanding melodicism is entirely suited. However, his latest album, ‘Mahashmashana’, in addition to boasting a title to inspire dread amongst radio DJs, sees FJM reemerging spikier and embracing the contradictions that made him such a compelling performer.
The album title refers to the practice in Hinduism that signifies the ‘Great Cremation Ground,’ symbolizing liberation and spiritual transformation, highlighting its significance for transcending the cycle of life and death. It suggests that the nine-minute opening track of the same name is going to reference at least tangentially some lofty concepts. The song sketches courtiers in lavish nail polish and tailored slacks, “resplendent in donor class panache / it’s a scheme to enrich assholes.” Meanwhile, the song radiates in some of the most lavish orchestration imaginable with strings, horns and pianos combining in a swoon of magnificence. Its line about “A perfect lie can live forever / The truth don’t fare as well” feels painfully salient as this review is being written in the immediate aftermath of the news coming through that the mango Mussolini has been elected president of the USA.
‘She Cleans Up’ heads in a different musical direction with the harshest guitars to appear on an FJM record, accompanied by blasts of wailing saxophone. Its lyrics are as usual eminently quotable and have some continuity with the title track reference that “there’s no figure on the cross populated”, this time mentioning Mary Magdalene’s visions just before Good Friday eve. It ends with the reflection, “Sure your politics are perfect with a gun aimed at your head / It’s a good thing god gave us someone on whom we can depend to clean up.” Again, the lines are dripping with enough ambiguity and apparent cynicism to lend themselves to varying interpretations about contemporary America.
His career-long tendency to self-reflexivity is apparent on ‘Josh Tillman and the Accidental Dose’ which starts with a mention of ‘Astral Weeks’ and finds him unwell with clown portraits speaking to him. The words, “Performance art? Elaborate con?” could easily be FJM laughing at critical perception of his work. Meanwhile, the song is elevated by its jazzy vibe, gorgeous keyboard line and dramatic orchestral punctuation.
Backed again by exquisitely lush orchestration, ‘Mental Health’ tangentially tackles the elephant in the room as most FJM songs involve characters having some battles with their perception of reality, displaying schizophrenic and self-destructive tendencies. There is also a suggestion that his songs are celebrating this tendency with the observation, “Your true self / Oh they’d love if you could find it / Makes you much less hard work to predict.”
‘Screamland’ marks out bleaker territory even if it begins with the line, “the optimist swears hope dies last.” Its soaring “stay young, get numb” chorus implies a desperation while holding out the hope that “love must find a way.” After the anguish, ‘Being You’ offers respite, its smooth aura making it a closer companion of ‘Josh Tillman and the Accidental Dose’ and having the quality of the best early 1970s singer-songwriters.
The album’s other major epic, the eight-and-a-half minute ‘I Guess Time Just Makes Fools of Us All’ has an unusually danceable groove backed by saxes and swelling orchestration before running out with funky keyboard lines. As ever, he is able to skewer contemporary failings with an impeccable turn of phrase (“The great-ish minds of my generation / Gladly conscripted in the war / Of defending any Goliath / That would deign darken the door”) and mock himself (“That’s where you’ll find me: in Las Vegas / Doing my greatest hits.”) It closes in contemplative mood with ‘Summers Gone’ which could have been from the ‘Chloë’ sessions, all gentle piano and easy listening orchestra, though with FJM referring to himself as a lecherous old windbag.
Over the course of its eight songs and fifty minutes, ‘Mahashmashana’ scales the musical heights of ‘I Love You, Honeybear’ and ‘Pure Comedy’ while the lyrics are full of the WTF moments, insights and puzzles that will delight his long-term fans.
Father John Misty: Mahashmashana – Out 22 November 2024 (Bella Union)
John Misty – I Guess Time Just Makes Fools of Us All [Official Audio]
I was editor of the long-running fanzine, Plane Truth, and have subsequently written for a number of publications. While the zine was known for championing the most angular independent sounds, performing in recent years with a community samba percussion band helped to broaden my tastes so that in 2021 I am far more likely to be celebrating an eclectic mix of sounds and enthusing about Made Kuti, Anthony Joseph, Little Simz and the Soul Jazz Cuban compilations as well as Pom Poko and Richard Dawson.
