By Katie Ryu
Singer-songwriter Mitski Miyawaki, who goes solely by Mitski, revealed she is writing an exclusive soundtrack for the upcoming graphic novel “This is Where We Fall.” The acclaimed indie rock musician was enlisted by Z2 Comics, a publishing company distinctive for combining music and comics, to create the score.
“This is Where We Fall” is a science fiction graphic novel by writer Chris Miskiewicz and illustrator Vincent King. This comic is the beginning of a new action-packed series that is expected to “[delve] into complex questions on science, faith, [and] mankind’s need to believe in something bigger than itself,” as per the novel description. It explores an afterlife defined by the manner by which one has died, rather than the merit of the life lived.
“A project and partnership like this is the perfect marriage of a visual art form like comics, and music. Fans of Mitski’s music will not only get something new from one of their favorite artists, but a companion piece that completes the experience,” Z2 publisher Josh Frankel said, according to British music journalism site, New Musical Express.
Mitski’s original score will be available in March 2021, when the graphic novel will be released in a standard softcover edition in stores and shipped to buyers who pre-ordered through the Z2 Comics website. The hardcover edition with an exclusive cassette and the limited deluxe edition with a vinyl soundtrack are available only on the Z2 website.
Notably, there is no definitive word on what the soundtrack might sound like, which as Mitski fans will likely know, is fairly on-brand for her. She’s not intentionally mysterious or anomalous, but Mitski as a musician and as a person deviates from the norm. Case in point, she made the decision to essentially disappear from social media over a year ago, having found the demands of social media to be burdensome and anxiety-inducing. Mitski quite literally has no socials, which is not only rare for celebrities like her, but is a contributing factor to the way the outside world sometimes struggles to keep up with whatever she’s doing. As conveyed by Mitski’s many concert performances, artful music videos, and insightful interviews, she’s very much a complex, layered, enigmatic soul; so she can be unexpected.
Mitski’s announcement in June 2019 regarding her September Summerstage concert in New York certainly had panicking fans viewing her as so. She had said it would be her “last show indefinitely.” Many feared she meant she was done with music forever, prompting Mitski to clarify that she was only taking a break.
“Y’all, I’m not quitting music! Me? Quit music?? I’ve been on non-stop tour for over 5 years, I haven’t had a place to live during this time, & I sense that if I don’t step away soon, my self-worth/identity will start depending too much on staying in the game, in the constant churn,” Mitski wrote from her now deleted Twitter account.
The Summerstage concert closed out both Mitski’s “Be The Cowboy” tour and her days of constant touring. Mitski hasn’t released an album since “Be The Cowboy” in 2018, so the soundtrack to “This is Where We Fall” will be her first since then. Needless to say, Mitski enthusiasts are eager for more of her music.
It appears safe to say that they can be hopeful for this soundtrack, which already sounds intriguing based on the little information that has been released about it. Mitski recently offered her thoughts on this unique project.
“It was exciting to make a soundtrack for a comic book. It allowed me to work outside of my usual songwriting form and try to approach it like a score, but without any of the cues that come with working alongside a moving image, which ended up being both freeing and challenging,” Mitski said in a press statement.
She hopes her music for this graphic novel will help readers and listeners become immersed in the story.
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