Mitski ’s off-kilter folk pop is probably not the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a TikTok hit, but the musician’s intricate anthems of loneliness, hope and desire were embraced by a new generation during COVID and they haven’t let go since. It’s given the once-comfortably cult Mitski a breakout moment that even she has seemed surprised by. Earlier this year, she played four nights at London’s Eventim Apollo in support of 2023’s gorgeous, lovelorn album The Land is Inhospitable And So Are We and on Sunday night, she returned to the capital to headline All Points East Festival in Victoria Park.
Rather than shy away from all the attention though, the biggest show of her already-ambitious The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We tour saw Mitski loud and proud about the unique world she has created. “I cannot escape the spotlight,” she giggled onstage after playfully trying to outrun the lights following her. The show opened with the dreamy Everyone, as Mitski threw herself into the heavily stylised show.
A physical performer, every song had moments of choreography that ranged from sleek interpretative dance to cartoonish dog impressions with giddy melodrama the flavour of the night. Three songs into the theatrical, bewitching set, Mitski broke character and addressed the audience. “I’m so happy you’re here.
You made it,” she said, before she encouraged the crowd to limber up. “You didn’t think you needed that, did you,” she added befo.