Father John Misty played the last U.S. show of his tour in support of Pure Comedy at the Fox Theater in Pomona. Pure Comedy is one of 2017’s most talked about albums. Josh Tillman, better known as Father John Misty, followed up the breakthrough success of I Love You, Honeybear with an album that diverges from that formula. The songs are longer, more wordy, and are ballads for the most part. I’d only heard great things about his live show and went in with high expectations, even if it was a slower set that drew heavily from Pure Comedy. Not surprisingly, Misty blew my expectations out of the water.

He walked out on stage to thunderous applause and the opening notes of “Pure Comedy”, the title track of his latest record. Immediately, he assumed his role of sometimes manic folk rock frontman, sometimes preacher. When he wanted a line to hit, he’d pause, looks out at the audience, and deadpan it. This was what made the slower songs off Pure Comedy such as “The Memo” and “When The God Of Love Returns There’ll Be Hell To Pay” work so well. He held onto every word and kept the audience engaged. That same delivery was made for “Bored In The USA”. Slightly altered lyrics like, “Save me president anyone“, got a huge reaction out of the crowd.

Although this was a tour behind Pure Comedy, his Father John Misty debut, Fear Fun, received quite a bit of love. The only time he strapped on an electric guitar was for the slashing chords of “Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings”, which he sang as a silhouette shrouded in fog. Any cut from Fear Fun got the crowd moving and I was very happy he’s still playing that many songs off it. I’d recommend catching him sooner rather than later, before he starts having to cut earlier songs from his set. Misty slipping into his gorgeous falsetto on “Nancy From Now On” was a testament to his vocal abilities. He followed up that song with a story about someone taking the first line of that song a bit too seriously at a bar, but I missed most of it due to someone yelling for his attention behind me. The crowd around that guy got sick of him really quick, but not surprisingly he didn’t care and kept on yelling through Father John Misty’s set. Eventually he finally caught the attention of Tillman, who responded to his yelling for a bit before consciously ignoring him. Even then he didn’t shut up and was the only irritating part of an otherwise perfect show.

The setlist was close to perfect in my opinion. Why? He played just under half of Fear Fun, the Pure Comedy songs better suited for a stage, and all but two songs off of I Love You, Honeybear. I Love You, Honeybear was his breakthrough album and is my personal favorite. The lyrics are honest, but sardonic, no song overstays its welcome, and he’s able to wipe the negativity slate clean by the end of the album. The two songs that didn’t make the cut were “True Affection” and “I Went To The Store One Day”. Father John Misty was the liveliest singing songs off that album. He’d swing around the microphone, throw around the stand, and walk over to the audience. He really cements himself as one of the best performers touring today. He knew when to hold back and when to let loose.

After singing his heart out on fan favorite, “I Love You, Honeybear”, he walked off stage. The crowd didn’t move an inch as without question he’d be back for an encore. Not leaving us waiting for too long, he walked back on stage to perform a song I’d been waiting the entire set for. He’s said it was written at a time in his life that was much more dark and negative than it is now. He doesn’t necessarily enjoy performing it, but I heard it started making the set again recently. “The Night Josh Tillman Came To Our Apt.” is one of the most cynical songs on I Love You, Honeybear. In contrast to the other songs from that album, he sung it without leaving the mic stand. Behind him the music video played, which features a drug fueled run in with his alter ego, who he eventually makes out with. After that came “Real Love Baby”, which has the most mainstream appeal of any of his songs. It prompted a sing along and was the most lighthearted performance of the night. One of the songs I kept seeing on setlists, but wasn’t sure how he arranged live, was “So I’m Growing Old On Magic Mountain”. At nearly ten minutes in length, with most of it consisting of a swelling outro, it doesn’t seem like the ideal song to close the set with. Surprisingly to me, Misty and the band played through the whole song. When paired with the scrolling landscape visuals, it became a welcome moment for everyone to come down a bit after such a high energy set. Misty knows how to pace a show though and soon came the opening chords of “Holy Shit”. When it comes to letting loose, the most surprising moment of the set was how amped up the second half of “Holy Shit” was. Just when I thought that’d be the perfect ending to the show, he jumped into “The Ideal Husband”. The song takes on even more manic energy live and left the audience completely satisfied.

There’s nothing more anyone could’ve asked for out of Father John Misty or the stellar band behind him. He played for about two hours and transfixed the audience’s attention the entire time. He was charming, owned the stage, and flexed his vocal abilities on nearly every song.

The opening act was Weyes Blood, a pseudonym Natalie Mering performs under. In anticipation for the show I purchased her 2016 album, Front Row Seat To Earth, and instantly fell in love with her voice and swirling soundscapes. The setlist consisted entirely of songs from that album, aside from a George Harrison cover. Her voice is just that good, as it sounds exactly like it does on record, and the band breathed a new sense of life into the songs. Her dry wit and sense of humor was engaging. At one point she picked up a gummy bear from the stage, threw it out in the crowd, then checked back later to see how the guy who ate it was doing. It made every bit of sense to have Weyes Blood opening for Father John Misty.

With the combined talent of Josh Tillman, Natalie Mering, and their respective backing bands, this was probably the best concert I’ve attended.

You can purchase Pure Comedy from Amazon here and Weyes Blood’s Front Row Seat To Earth from Amazon here.