Song of the Week breaks down and talks about the song we just can’t get out of our head each week. Find these songs and more on our Spotify Top Songs playlist. For our favorite new songs from emerging artists, check out our Spotify New Sounds playlist. This week, Mitski makes a welcome comeback.
When the world needed her most, Mitski disappeared. In her two-year absence from music, from touring, and from social media, fans of the indie rock superstar found solace in her career highlights like “Nobody” and “Your Best American Girl,” which often centered around the fear of not living up to the expectations set by both others and yourself. “Working for the Knife,” her first new music since 2018’s Be the Cowboy, is no exception to the Mitski formula.
From the get-go, “Working for the Knife” offers piercing anecdotes about Mitski’s own perceived shortcomings: “I cry at the start of every movie/ I guess ’cause I wish I was making things, too,” she croons in the track’s opening lines. Over sweeping, roaring instrumentals, she recounts worrying that nobody would relate to her breakup songs, the anxiety that looms behind autonomy in adulthood, and the existentialism of ringing in your 30s; sure, the freedom of being able to spend your life the way you want might seem appealing, but what if the rest of the world disagrees with you?
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Sometimes, as the song’s music video indicates, merely existing feels like putting on a one-person show in an empty auditorium.
“Working for the Knife” extends far beyond personal strife, however. Underneath its surface, it can be taken as a critique of hustle culture, one that feels strikingly relevant as young people battle an unparalleled sense of burnout. “I start the day lying and end with the truth/ That I’m dying for the knife,” she sings.
As Mitski tells it, the “knife” could represent unattainable standards, the fear of falling behind, or, on the other hand, the potential for making a name for yourself in a cruel world. Whichever form the knife takes, however, it holds a boundless potential for pain.
— Abby Jones
