This November, Omaha-based indie pop royalty The Mynabirds are releasing their fifth full-length album It’s Okay To Go Back If You Keep Moving Forward via lead Laura Burhenn’s own Our Secret Handshake imprint. The Mynabirds sound has shifted between releases, Burhenn reimagining what the project could be on each album, though the throughline has always been a sense of emotion and political engagement. The new record is no exception, its songs often written alone with nothing but voice and piano and recorded with the imperfections left in to celebrate its humanity.
Originally penned in 2016 during the Syrian refugee crisis and the nascent MeToo movement, lead single ‘Good Medicine’ is sadly more relevant than ever today. “Now we have refugees fleeing climate crises and genocides turned away at closed borders, a convicted rapist as President again, and survivors begging on the steps of the Capitol to be heard and seen,” Burhenn continues. “We watch in horror as Palestinian children are killed by bombs our tax dollars fund, as mass shootings devastate our schools, as gun violence takes lives daily—yet nothing changes. There is no end to the onslaught, and no meaningful mental healthcare system in America to help.”
Photo by Jess Ewald