father john misty
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 19: Father John Misty performs during the 2019 BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival at Prospect Park Bandshell on June 19, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Taylor Hill/Getty Images)

Father John Misty Announces New Album in the Weirdest and Best Way

Father John Misty may be a millennial, but he recently announced the forthcoming release of his new album in a decidedly old-school way.

The bearded indie weirdo formerly known as John Tillman has been teasing a new album with bizarre, cryptic social media posts for a few weeks now, so we knew an announcement was coming. We just never guessed it would take this form.

Mr. Misty (can’t be the first time someone’s called him that; respect to the Dairy Queen treat of the same name) apparently had his label, Bella Union, mail flexi-disc vinyl to select fans on its mailing list. The records contained a spoken-word message with deets on the new LP, titled Chloe and the Next 20th Century.

“Is this real? It is. This is the album. You’re listening to it right now. That’s nice,” a voice that sounded a lot like FJM’s said. “11 new tracks produced by Jonathan Wilson and Josh Tillman. Chloe and the Next 20th Century. It’s technically new.”

This clever marketing campaign was a success, in that fans immediately took to social media to share the surprise. That’s how we know that the album drops on April 8, 2022, in vinyl, CD, cassette, and a “hardback edition.”

Well played, Papa John.

We can’t say this’ll inspire us to sign up for any mailing lists anytime soon (we’re in awe they still exist) but it was thoughtful of Misty to put the music back in the hands of fans rather than headline-hungry music journalists. (Wait – that’s not us…is it?)

Cover Photo: Taylor Hill / Contributor (Getty Images)

MORE NEWS:

TRENDING

X