Mitski Miyawaki has always been an artist primarily concerned with longing for more. Whether it be love, connection, belonging, success, or self-acceptance, she has a song about it, often multiple. So, of course, upon the announcement of her eighth studio album, it was easy to expect a similar message. Make no mistake, Nothing is About to Happen to Me is no stranger to yearning. The album itself is laced in it, along with heavy notes of confusion, disorientation, and derangement. But there is something different this time, because this time around, Mitski has locked the door between herself and the outside world on her own volition, so, presumably, nothing else can happen to her.
Nothing is About to Happen to Me, unlike her other works, is a concept album. It follows
Mitski, or rather, the character of Mitski, who, in the wake of being left by an ex-lover, has
locked herself within her decrepit old home, complete with stray cats, wild animals in the attic, and a disorienting landscape. This setting, and this album itself, feel like being wrapped in an oddly comforting straitjacket. There is a longing to be free, but at the end of the day, it’s easier to stay than it is to try to leave. The instrumentals are largely theatrical or orchestral, though they vary track to track, encompassing much of the musical experimentation the artist has been implementing in her past several albums. Each song feels reminiscent of a different past work, as if the narrator is spiraling through the years.
In short, this album is fun, though disturbing. The tracks are unique, the setting enticing,
and you can’t help but think that, as much as this album is another reflective, emotive work of suffering, it’s also something that she clearly had fun with. Mitski covers the topics she always covers, but this time with so many differing lenses. Some are sad, desperate, or angry, but some are emotive and wild. Where’s My Phone and I’ll Change for You are perfect examples of this, being takes on classic staples of the artist’s career that come out fresh and wildly fun. Where’s My Phone is strongly reminiscent of the indie-rock greatness that was Bury Me at Makeout Creek, this time paired with a strong orchestra and backing choir, which makes the song a disorienting, strangling maze to navigate in the best way possible. Similarly, I’ll Change for You is a relationship ballad about changing yourself for someone else (a classic Mitski staple), but paired with a Bossa nova-inspired beat that livens up the song in a truly spectacular way, and stands to be the high point of the album.
While not all the tracks are complete winners, and a good amount of them end up feeling
a little too similar to works of the past, this album didn’t disappoint. It feels like the end, and
simultaneously a continuation, of a cycle. The Mitski character will seemingly always be locked in a state of desperate yearning, and her need to still narrate it even in self-isolation points to a possible ninth album and another chapter in her story, whenever that day comes.
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