Mitski Opens the Door: A Reverent Reimagination of Townshend’s Classic
Mitski, known for her emotionally raw vocals and lyrical subtleties, has just dropped a cover of Pete Townshend’s 1980 hit “Let My Love Open the Door” — but she doesn’t merely reproduce it. Her version, featured on the soundtrack of A Big Bold Beautiful Journey (the new film starring Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell), strips back the original’s buoyant new‑wave energy and offers something more intimate, reflective, and haunting.
From Synth Pop to Solo Piano & Voice
The original “Let My Love Open the Door” is an upbeat, optimistic piece typical of Townshend’s post‑Who solo material: synths, cheerful rhythm, a sense of outward energy. Mitski’s version, however, pulls in the opposite direction — it pares things down to something much more spare. According to reviews, her rendition is essentially just voice and piano. She slows the tempo, gives the lyrics room to breathe, and lets the emotional undercurrent of the words stand out.
In doing so, she flips the lens: what was once a song about invitation, brightness, openness, becomes a kind of interior plea. In Mitski’s hands, “letting love open the door” feels less like a celebration and more like a longing.
The Song in Context: Townshend’s Original & Meaning
For those less familiar, “Let My Love Open the Door” came out on Townshend’s solo album Empty Glass. It was arguably his biggest solo chart success, reaching high across several territories, especially in the U.S. Though Townshend himself has had mixed feelings about it — at times dismissing it as a “ditty” — he’s also said its deeper core centers on a kind of divine or unconditional love.
That tension between lightness and spiritual depth makes the song fertile ground for reinterpretation. Mitski taps into that duality — the brightness and the longing — but leans more heavily into the shadow side: the vulnerability, the quiet ache.
Why Mitski? Why Now?
Mitski has never shied away from vulnerability. Her work tends to explore liminal states — loneliness, longing, identity, desire — so “Let My Love Open the Door” seems almost predestined for her style. It’s a song that has always had one foot outside the door, looking in, and one inside, unsure whether to step forward. Mitski widens that space, lets us linger in the threshold.
The film A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, meanwhile, provides a fitting frame. It’s described as a sweeping, somewhat fantastical adventure about two strangers who meet at a friend’s wedding, relive moments of their pasts, and face the possibility of altering their futures. In a story about doors — literal, metaphorical, and emotional — Mitski’s cover becomes more than a song: it becomes a scene‑setter, a mood piece, a lens on loss, hope, and possibility.
Final Thoughts
Covers run a risk of either being too deferential or trying so hard to be different that they lose what made the original compelling. Mitski’s take avoids both pitfalls. She honors the heart of Townshend’s song — its warmth, its hope — while reshaping its emotional architecture.
For longtime fans of Mitski, this fits seamlessly into her evolution: someone who consistently channels deep feeling through minimal means. For fans of Townshend and Empty Glass, it’s a reminder that even songs that once felt triumphant can also carry contradictions, fragility, and beauty when looked at from another angle.
If you haven’t heard it yet, it’s worth listening with headphones, letting it unfold slowly. The cover doesn’t call attention to itself — it invites you in.