Album Review: Mitski – Nothing’s About to Happen to Me

The last Mitski album I reviewed was 2018’s ‘Be the Cowboy’ which was a dark and intriguing look into the psyche of an emerging young artist. I saw her at a festival in 2019, playing low down on the bill, unknown by most of the crowd, partly performing hiding under a table. Even if some of the performance was inexplicably odd you could tell then she had the guts and gravitas to become a star. 

Since then she’s gone stratospheric, with viral success during the pandemic, an actual chart hit and a younger generation of fans embracing her music to the point of extremes.  For a while it felt strange and uncomfortable being an older Mitski fan since her crowd had skewed so young. 

This new album was recorded with the intention of going back to her indie rock basics, after three albums of gothic synth pop. In the end the songs dictated the music and she did bring in some more orchestral arrangements, some Americana sounding flourishes and weirder elements too.  

‘Nothing’s About to Happen to Me’ is centred around the story of a woman living alone, dealing with the recent break-up of a long term relationship, inspired by Grey Gardens, Shirley Jackson, cats and Victorian houses. 

Continue reading “Album Review: Mitski – Nothing’s About to Happen to Me”

Live Review: High Water Festival 2019, Charleston, SC

If I could design my own festival then it would look much like High Water Festival in Charleston, South Carolina. Compact and curated by local legends Shovels and Rope it appeals to grown ups who want a blissful weekend of diverse music. The joy of this well-organised festival is that staggered stage times allow you to see every artist on the bill – meaning there’s not a lull in proceedings the whole weekend. The site lay out is simple, easily navigated and offering space for everyone. Even the VIP section, which I am naturally opposed to, was set up in such a way as not to affect the rest of the crowd. Continue reading “Live Review: High Water Festival 2019, Charleston, SC”

Album Review: Mitski – Be The Cowboy

In an interview a few years back Mitski responded to Damon Albarn dismissing modern musicians as the ‘selfie generation’ by saying ‘Young artists talking about themselves can be the most political thing done today, and is something a lot of them couldn’t have done before, or at least not to an audience.’ On her new album ‘Be The Cowboy’ Mitski’s songs use the personal try to make sense of the complex world around her; constantly asking questions and contemplating her relationships. In the cover picture (coincidentally reminiscent of Blur’s Leisure album) Mitski is preparing for her performance, a knowing nod to the unreality of our image driven world. She looks at us sideways, unsmiling. We press play and she dives in. Continue reading “Album Review: Mitski – Be The Cowboy”

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