Rating: 4.5 stars

Following the announcement of her indefinite retirement in 2019, Mitski Miyawaki (“Puberty 2”) spent three years on hiatus in Nashville, Tennessee, silently contemplating the continuation of her music career. Eventually, in collaboration with her longtime producer Patrick Hyland, she made a highly-anticipated comeback with the release of “Laurel Hell,” which was inspired by the “folk term for areas of the southern Appalachians, where the mountain laurel grows so close and thickly that it is almost impossible to pass,” according to the BBC. “Mitski liked the concept of trying to escape the knotted thorns as a metaphor for her own struggles.”

A year later, Mitski has continued to push further away from her period of physical and mental exhaustion with the release of her newest work, “The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We.” While traces of her previous album resonate, her latest songs hold enough breathing room to allow a new perspective to enter; instead of the album front dominated by feelings of despair and the pain felt when undertaking a myriad of personal struggles, “The Land” opens up the possibility of hope and a left legacy. While Mitski has never strayed from the notions of inevitable death or isolation, “My Love Mine All Mine” has Mitski pleading to a beautiful moon to take all her love and to spread it across the land once she is no more, stacking chairs higher than conceiving possible just to find a place to bathe in the warm rays of the celestial body.

“Buffalo Replaced” leans heavily on the idea of natural serenity, the peace felt when a fast-paced urban environment is abandoned for the quintessential way of rural American living. One of the most prominent themes in “Laurel Hell” was Mitski’s overwhelming battle with relentless fame and the fanbase that placed ever-vigilant eyes on her, which was also a significant contributing factor to her temporary retirement a few years ago. Thus, the song pays tribute to the countryside and its almost-healing properties, with the “full moon, so bright, fireflies zoomin’ through the yard like highway cars, someone out here burnin’ something, kids feelin’ alive.” 

The music also encompasses a blossoming of hope, where Mitski states, “I have a hope and though she’s blind with no name, she… feeds herself when I’m away. Sometimes I think it would be easier without her but I know nothing can hurt me when I see her sleepin’ face.”

“The Land” is far too recent for each song to have a corresponding music video, but two so far have minimalist and strikingly stunning visuals. “My Love Mine All Mine” and “Bug Like an Angel” both occupy their own sets and are cut only to show different perspectives in the setting and are characterized by their soft blue tints and welcoming darkness. “My Love Mine All Mine” takes advantage of this color scheme by ending its video with a shot of a gorgeous sunset overlooking the tranquil ocean, symbolic of the world at a peaceful standstill.

“The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We” is not to be recognized as a breakaway album from Mitski’s traditional themes or persona; “I’m Your Man” and “I Don’t Like My Mind” dive deeply into the turmoil of her life, and the slow, captivating pace of each song allows the vocals to vibrate like an echo off the walls of an open cave, letting the subliminal message of each composure to marinate deep into the mind of the listener. An homage to her earlier works, Mitski’s clear-cut voice and tonal inflections remain as spine-chilling as ever.

Image from Mitski via Twitter.com