Like the rest of Mitski fans, we were waiting by our phones for the release of The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We, and as with all Mitski releases we were more than happy with the results.
Before the release of the album we got ‘Bug Like an Angel,’ ‘Star,’ and ‘Heaven,’ and if you were at any of the listening or viewing events you had the chance to hear a couple of the other tracks on the album as well. And because we wanted to hear the album for the first time with its release we tried our hardest to stay away from watching any of the videos. Which ended up being super hard but as they say we’re certainly “reaping the rewards!”
Mitski brings a refreshing sound to all 11 tracks, you can really tell she has found her love for writing and making music again. Her vocals and lyrics are so solid from start to finish. She has a mix between shorter and longer tracks in the album, and it doesn’t seem like it’s all over the place. What she is really good at is making shorter tracks seem like a full story, there isn’t anything left to say, and they have the same effect as the longer tracks do.
We were also getting major deja vu with some of these tracks. Like when she mentions dogs again like ‘I Bet on Losing Dogs’ in ‘I’m Your Man.’ As well as the lyrics “Now the world is mine alone / With no one, no one” from ‘The Frost’ giving us ‘Nobody’ vibes. Are we reaching? Maybe a bit lol.
But now that we are speaking of lyrics, there really is no way to think of Mitski and not think lyrics. As we mentioned her lyrics are solid start to finish for the album. As a matter of fact The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We, have some of our favorite Mitski lyrics to date! So we just wanna give you our favorite lyrics from each track.
‘Bug Like an Angel’
“As I get older, I learned I’m a drinker / Sometimes, a drink feels like family.”
We’ve talked about ‘Bug Like an Angel‘ before, but we cannot not mention it again. Come on the lyrics are pretty deep even though it is straightforward.
‘Buffalo Replaced’
“Sometimes I think It would be easier without her / But I know nothing can hurt me when I see her sleepin’ face”
Mitski and producer Patrick Hyland really took the quote “take the bull by its horns” to heart, as ‘Buffalo Replaced’ was the album’s starting point. Once you hear the track, it’s a great start. There are only a couple of tracks on the album about hope and the idea of free will, and this is one of them. We honestly can’t talk enough about this track.
‘Heaven’
“And the dark awaits us / All around the corner / But here in our place / We have for the day / Can we stay awhile and listen for Heaven.”
So ‘Heaven’ was an immediate standout; the slow instrumentals and vocals got to us. This is a really heartbreaking track. And we like this line specifically because it sums up what the track is about. They know they are going to/are in the process of losing the love they have, so all they want to do is hold onto it for a little bit longer.
‘I Don’t Like My Mind’
“I don’t like my mind, I don’t like being left alone in a room / With all it’s opinions about things that I’ve done / So, yeah, I blast music loud, and I work myself to the bone”
So, ‘I Don’t Like My Mind’ is a track that we’ve found ourselves in love with since the beginning. And this line specifically hit us in the gut. Because, you know, sometimes some “embarrassing” moments are just replaying very loudly in our heads, where you have no choice but to drown it out with music. It’s very relatable.
‘The Deal’
“I want someone to take this soul / I can’t bear to keep it, I’d give it just to give”
Okay, honestly, this one has some of our favorite lyrics. We are super in love with the story. Plus, the line proves how desperate the narrator is to get rid of their soul. They don’t want any personal gain; they just can’t bare to have it any longer.
‘When Memories Snow’
“And if I break / Could I go on break? / Be back in my room / Writin’ speeches in my head / Listenin’ to the thousand hands / That clap for me in the dark”
Okay, so ‘When Memories Snow’ is on the shorter side of tracks from The Land Is inhospitable and So Are We, but we still love it. It really gives us Be The Cowboy vibes. We think the lyrics, especially the ones above, are super clever. It also stands out from the other lyrics in the tracks.
‘My Love Mine All Mine’
“Moon, tell me if I could / Send up my heart to you? So, when I die, which I must do / Could it shine down here with you?”
We really like ‘My Love Mine All Mine’ because of Mitski’s explanation of it. She sees love as the only thing entirely yours and wanted to write the track, so her love can live on, which we think is really cute. And we know a lot of people say it, but love, and to love is truly underrated. There is no better feeling than spreading love; the lyrics perfectly describe how we want our love to live on.
‘The Frost’
“But me, I was hidin’, or forgotten, the only one left / Now the world is mine alone”
The instrumentals for ‘The Frost’ are something we love. But the lyrics are something we really love. It’s really heartbreaking, especially the part where she says, “I was hidin’ or forgotten.” We know the track is all about that loneliness and the feelings that come from that, but the fact that the line is basically questioning if it or isn’t her fault that she is alone, had us crying.
‘Star’
“Keep a leftover light / Burnin’ so you can keep lookin’ up / I’m yours no matter / That love’s gone”
The almost eery and peaceful opening to ‘Star’ drags you in before you get hit head-first by the lyrics. Moving on from someone you once loved, and who once loved you is super hard, and it’s even harder when that love and care for each other is still there. The lyric is our favorite from the track, and also sweet.
‘I’m Your Man’
“I’m sorry I’m the one you love / No one will ever love me like you again”
Okay, if we thought some of the other tracks on the album hit hard, these lyrics hit harder. In ‘I’m Your Man,’ it’s all about realizing you never loved the person you had the way you should’ve and regretting it. It’s filled with regret and emotions, and the lyrics above can really fit into a track like this or even with roles reversed.
‘I Love Me After You’
“Stride through the house naked / Don’t even care that the / Curtains are open / Let the darkness see me”
Okay, so following heartache filled lyrics, we get some self-love time with ‘I Love Me After You.’ The lyrics really say it all: it’s about finally looking after yourself first, loving who you are, and enjoying your life. After all the heartbreaking lyrics, it was a nice ending to a great album.
As you noticed some tracks we had to include more lyric lines because they were just that good! And even though we don’t like to pick favorites. We have to say our favorite tracks from The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We is ‘My love Mine All Mine,’ ‘The Deal,’ ‘I Don’t Like My Mind,’ and ‘Heaven.’ Make sure to stream the album, here.
Was it hard to pick our favorite tracks? Yes. So now we want to know what were your favorite tracks from the album? What lyric has been stuck in your head? Let us know in the comments down below or over on Twitter @thehoneypop, and don’t forget to talk to us on Facebook and Instagram!
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