The indie music star Mitski is no stranger to love, so with her time as an artist she can weave those feelings into some of the most, in my opinion, beautiful lyrics and rhythms out there. Best known for her songs like 2018’s “Washing Machine Heart”, 2016’s “I Bet on Losing Dogs”, and 2023’s “My Love Mine All Mine”. The third of which was one of TikTok’s most used audios in late 2023 and staked its claim on Billboard Hot 100 by remaining on it for 5 months.
So, the song may have been popular, but I don’t believe many people have sat and thought about what it is trying to say. On top of that, what about the rest of the album? It goes by the name “The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We” and personally (as a diehard Mitski fan of 3 years), there are some hidden gems that’re still waiting to be discovered a year after the album’s release.
To be relevant to the fact this story will be released on Valentine’s Day, I’ll be discussing the songs most pertaining to the concept of “Love”. Since this doesn’t narrow it down too much, I will choose the ones that are most unique to this concept.
I’ll begin with “My Love Mine All Mine”, since it is not only the most popular, but it’s wonderful lyrically. The song begins with Mitski making a request to a personified moon; she asks if she could give it her heart so her love can remain forever, like the celestial body does in our orbit. She does this because of her view on death. She views it as a thing that she “must do” simply by nature, but she doesn’t want that to stop her from loving. That love she has is, as she views it, her only real possession, and it is hers, all hers.
The second, much less popular song, “Heaven”, is what I believe is closest to a traditional love song. The rhythm feels like a slow dance with a lover. It sways and sighs along with you as you listen (during her live performances she even slow dances with a spotlight!). The imagery she uses says she’s “Like a murmuring brook, curving about you”. Which I think illustrates this feeling perfectly.
Overall, the song is about cherishing what little time you have with a lover, about how even if you’re just drinking from the same mug that got left out, it’s still a kiss. This song teaches you to feel the heaven around you when you are in love.
The final song I’ve chosen is “I Love Me After You”. It opens with her listing various self-care activities such as applying toner, brushing her hair, and laughing in the mirror. She says to herself that she loves herself after “the king of all the land”. The final verse mirrors the first but instead, she is listing what in life is hers. She is now king of all this land, and calling back to the album title, it is inhospitable. This is enough for her, it may not be the best, but it’s hers.
