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The latest music from Mitski has been nothing short of overwhelmingly good.
On Thursday, she shared the staggering third and final single from her forthcoming album, Be The Cowboy, which is out Aug. 17 on Dead Oceans. Her new song, “Two Slow Dancers,” follows previously released singles “Geyser” and “Nobody.” It’s a sentimental do-si-do, but it doesn’t risk coming across as maudlin. You can give it a listen below.
Lyrically, Mitski is a powerhouse. On “Nobody,” she explored loneliness through disco; on “Geyser,” a love song through water metaphors and indie-rock power. Now, in “Two Slow Dancers,” she’s working at a slower tempo, but she packs just as much punch. She describes a dimming relationship, one in which the two parties know there’s nothing salvageable.
“They used to have something together that is no longer there and they’re trying to relive it in a dance, knowing that they’ll have to go home and go back to their lives,” Mitski said of the song.
In Be The Cowboy, Mitski sings through a persona, a woman in control. She said, “Because women have so little power and showing emotion is seen as weakness, this ‘character’ clings to any amount of control she can get. Still, there is something very primordial in her that is trying to find a way to get out.” Be The Cowboy follows 2016’s Puberty 2, which landed on our list of the best albums of the year.
Mitski is also heading out on a hefty tour in support of the record, the dates of which you can find here. Preorder Be The Cowboy here.
Again, you can listen to Mitski’s new song, “Two Slow Dancers,” below. Stick around for her 2015 Daytrotter Session further down.