Father John Misty at The Capitol Theatre (September 14th, 2017)

Earlier this year Josh Tillman released the third album under the moniker Father John Misty, Pure Comedy (via Sub Pop) and is easily one of the best albums of 2017. Besides the hype leading up to and surrounding the album, fans were eagerly awaiting the announcement of a tour which we saw Tillman make several stops in NYC earlier in the year in support of the new album. He did not disappoint as he make two stops in New York early on in the tour cycle, and we were there when he stopped at Brooklyn Steel but were very excited he was coming back again to New York to play the one and only Capitol Theatre in Port Chester.

With the release of this new album, we’ve seen a slightly more subdued version of Father John Misty, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but at first a little confusing. The first time I saw him there was plenty of classic one-liners and amazing banter between the crowd/band. Maybe it was Pitchfork taping (no messing around on lifestreams, right?) but either way, this was the most focused performance I’ve ever seen from him and one of the best.

Before we go any further, it’s important to note that he’s not touring lightly either – he’s got a full backing band with two guitarists, a bassist, keyboardist, as well as a 10-piece orchestra. This full sound helped elevate all of his songs to another level that was one of the best matches I’ve seen for the Capitol Theatre, and really did help better translate songs from his entire catalog.

One of the highlights from his performance was the way he ended his first set. It was a 1-2-3 punch of “Bored in The USA,” “Memo,” “I’m Writing a Novel,” “Hollywood Forever Cemetery Signs,” “Real Love Baby” and ending it with all with crowd favorite “Honeybear.” As if that wasn’t enough, after the encore break Tillman said “I’ve got the strings with me, gotta do it all” and proceeded to go into a hauntingly beautiful 13-minute version of Pure Comedy standout track “Leaving LA.”

If you don’t believe me, you can relive the show anytime you want as Pitchfork was on hand recording the set as part of their ongoing Pitchfork Live series. Click here to watch the entire set!

Find more photos of Father John Misty and the setlist below:

Father John Misty Setlist:

1. Pure Comedy
2. Total Entertainment Forever
3. Things It Would Have Been Helpful to Know Before the Revolution
4. Ballad of the Dying Man
5. Nancy From Now On
6. Chateau Lobby #4 (in C for Two Virgins)
7. Strange Encounter
8. Nothing Good Ever Happens at the Goddamn Thirsty Crow
9. When the God of Love Returns There’ll Be Hell to Pay
10. When You’re Smiling and Astride Me
11. True Affection
12. Birdie
13. A Bigger Paper Bag
14. Bored in the USA
15. The Memo
16. I’m Writing a Novel
17. Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings
18. Real Love Baby
19. I Love You, Honeybear