Mitski is back with new music. The artist released a single, “Love Me More” today, with an accompanying video. In November, she released “The Only Heartbreaker” after a nearly three-year silence, and is dropping her new record, Laurel Hell, February 4.
Mitski explained the making of “Love Me More” in a statement. “‘Love Me More’ went through the most iterations out of all the songs on the album,” she said. “It’s been too fast, too slow, and at some point, it was even an old style country song. Finally, I think because we had watched The Exorcist, we thought of Mike Oldfield’s ‘Tubular Bells’ and experimented with floating an ostinato over the chorus. As we steadily evolved the ostinato to fit over the chord progressions, we began to hear how the track was meant to sound.”
The song is an ode to 80’s synth pop. Repetition and interesting melodies are replete in the single, bedded by a nostalgic beats and classic- rock leads. The video itself is a vintage throwback to the MTV age, featuring Mitski dancing, screaming, wiggling, burning. The footage is consistent with the artist’s dark, melodramatic aesthetic, and doesn’t relent until the final moments of the song. It’s an interesting take on the 80s video genre, one that Mitski fans will be engaging with for years to come.