Father John preaches

Looking for something a bit different after a weekend of clubbing or a night at the opera?

Next Monday (Feb 23) at King Tut’s is worth a gander for American singer and songwriter Father John Misty.

Born Joshua Tillman, the versatile performer is as neat with a guitar as he is on drums. Tillman is a former member of indie rock bands Saxon Shore and Fleet Foxes and has toured extensively with Pacific Northwest artists Damien Jurado, Jesse Sykes, and David Bazan.

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He donned the mantle of Father John Misty in 2012, releasing the album Fear Fun. When discussing the creation of the name, Tillman paraphrases the inimitable Philip Roth: “It’s all of me and none of me, if you can’t see that, you won’t get it. What I call it is totally arbitrary, but I like the name. You’ve got to have a name. I never got to choose mine.”

A couple of months prior to the release of the album, a video was released for Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings featuring Parks and Recreation  star Aubrey Plaza.

The album was a dramatic departure from any of Tillman’s former releases. On how the album came about Tillman said: “I got into my van with enough mushrooms to choke a horse and started driving down the coast with nowhere to go.

“After a few weeks, I was writing a novel, which is where I finally found my narrative voice. It was a while before that voice started manifesting in a musical way, but once I settled in the Laurel Canyon spider-shack where I’m living now, I spent months demoing all these weird-ass songs about weird-ass experiences almost in real time, and kind of had this musical ‘Oh-there-I-am’ moment.”

Let’s hope he finds time to muse between songs at Tut’s — doors 8.30pm, tickets £12.50.

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