“The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We” is singer-songwriter Mitski’s seventh album, following “Laurel Hell” (2022). Interestingly enough, Mitski contemplated retiring from music altogether a few years ago to, in her words, “find another life.” Since then, though, she’s released two albums, ultimately deciding to continue voicing her experiences through her songwriting.
Mitski’s first six albums are characterized by rich vocals and dramatic instrumentals, which are especially prominent in her first album, “Lush” (2012). Since the release of “Lush,” she has experimented with her sound, but the Mitski-esque drama and emotion has ultimately prevailed. However, she seems to have taken a little bit of a turn with “The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We” — I noticed some key differences from her previous albums.
The beginning of each song threw me for a loop; each one had a different quality that I associated with some genre that Mitski would not normally fall into. Songs like “Bug Like an Angel,” “The Deal,” and “I’m Your Man” have a more acoustic sound, with Mitski’s voice backed by a soft guitar. The opening notes of “Buffalo Replaced” were oddly reminiscent of 2010’s folk-pop—I certainly didn’t expect to be brought back to my elementary and middle school days while listening to a Mitski album (Phillip Phillips and “Counting Stars” by OneRepublic were my holy grails).
After my first listen of “The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We,” a few favorites emerged immediately—one I believe to be deserving of recognition is “I Don’t Like My Mind.” When the song began, I was ready to categorize it among the indie sad girls and Lucy Dacus (whom I love), but it morphed into the one of the most purely Mitski songs I’ve ever heard. This song was a beautifully accurate and crushing representation of the depressive agony of being alone with your thoughts. After reading the title and before even listening to “I Don’t Like My Mind,” I knew this one would be dejectedly personal, and I was not disappointed.
In stark contrast, another favorite of mine was “Heaven,” an account of pleasure and raw love. Sticking with my comparisons to other genres, the instrumentals in the beginning of “Heaven” reminded me of so many 1960s songs sung by the archetypal girl who is madly in love, alluding to the rest of the song. In this song, Mitski chooses to focus on only the present moment where she is with her lover, not thinking about the looming possibility of doubt or failure. I think I like this song so much because –, although it’s so thematically different from many of my favorite Mitski songs –, I like to experience all of her emotions, not just the negative ones; “Heaven” is reminiscent of one of her earlier songs (and my favorite Mitski song of all time), “Happy,” for those reasons.
Finally, I found it necessary to highlight a deserved fan favorite, “My Love Mine All Mine.” This song is soulful and, once again, highlights the best aspects of love. The lyrics are simply lovely, and the sound, although different from Mitski’s usual, works incredibly well. My favorite lyric from the entire album comes from this song: “My baby, here on earth / Showed me what my heart was worth.” Referring to “My Love Mine All Mine,” Mitski said, “To love is the best thing I ever did in my life,” which makes me love this song even more.
As a cohesive album, “The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We” chronicles a relationship and breakup, detailing all the emotions, from bliss to chaos to reminiscence to acceptance. Mitski’s songwriting is wonderfully diverse, utilizing cryptic metaphors in addition to the more direct lyrics that I tend to gravitate towards. I’ve come to realize that I might not be smart enough to understand some of Mitski’s more complex lyrics, and, frankly, that’s perfectly fine with me; I don’t always need to understand exactly what she means to feel the emotion in her music.
I’ve heard mixed reviews of “The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We,” and very fairly so—I didn’t love every song (“Buffalo Replaced” and “Bug Like an Angel” fell short for me). Regardless, a few of the songs evoked just the right emotions in me and will be entering my regular rotation. My primary takeaway, however, is that Mitski may never top “Puberty 2” (2016) and “Bury Me At Makeout Creek” (2014).
