J. Tillman
J. Tillman
Joshua Michael Tillman, also known as J. Tillman or Father John Misty, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and drummer. Maintaining a steady output of solo recordings since 2004, Tillman is a former member of indie rock bands Saxon Shore, Fleet Foxes, Jeffertitti's Nile, Pearly Gate Music, Siberian, Har Mar Superstar, Poor Moon, Low Hums, Jonathan Wilson, Bill Patton, The Lashes, Stately English, and has toured extensively with Pacific Northwest artists Damien Jurado, Jesse Sykes, and David Bazan...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionMusician
Date of Birth3 May 1981
CountryUnited States of America
My idea of that[idea of career] is constantly changing. I mostly just throw it out to the universe and I can't really do much after that. I've never taken the steps to be "successful": I've never had a manager or signed to a publishing house. I've talked to people about it but I've never followed through because it gives me the creeps.
I guess with the way that I've conducted myself I'm in the logical spot and I'm fine with that. Even my limited interactions with success have left me confused and bummed out, so I don't think the two can co-exist.
Love is just an institution...
Funny is a good foil. Humor is illuminating, and it also gives you power.
My humor is my creativity, and my skepticism is a gift.
It's a vanity to think that a legitimate shamanistic experience can be purchased.
There's a lot of risk in putting what you suspect you really are into your music.
Laurel Canyon is kind of grotesque. It's this nature-themed place, and everybody is kind of angry.
I was kind of bored playing drums in a band. Which was depressing, because playing in the band was kind of a golden ticket.
I had this revelation, you are a lot better at the between-song stuff than you are at the song stuff. That was devastating. And I usually find devastating things to be pretty valuable.
You can't really do anything creative without a source of inspiration.
I was like, 'Josh Tillman, you are not a songwriter. You are an ape. Stop thinking of yourself as a songwriter.'
I try to make myself, and subsequently the audience, as uncomfortable as possible, whether it's completely desecrating a song they thought was one thing, or getting too drunk to really do a very good job.