It’s like the late aughts all over again: This spring Father John Misty is releasing a new album and, shortly after, so will his former pals Fleet Foxes. The indie-folk pantheons are returning with their first album in six years, Crack-Up, on June 16 and with it comes a new song that’s about as long as the wait has been. Clocking in at just under nine minutes, “Third of May / Ōdaigahara” is a sweeping orchestral folk epic. Unsurprisingly, all the album’s details sure sound like they came from a guy with the post-grad blues: The album shares its title with an F. Scott Fitzgerald essay collection, its artwork is a limited edition Hiroshi Hamaya print, and the song title is half inspired by Goya and half inspired by a mountain in Japan. Like always, Robin Pecknold wrote all the lyrics, but this time, he also co-produced the album with Skyler Skjelset. Pecknold once described his intentions for this album as “Beautiful / not pastiche / not overwrought / surprising / not stock this or that genre / blah blah blah,” so just go with it.
