M. Ward surprised fans today with the release of his new album What A Wonderful Industry. The new album is the follow up to his 2016’s critically acclaimed solo album, More Rain, with mxdwn stating the record was lyrically and instrumentally stirring. Ward’s last album was Christmas Party, with fellow bandmate Zooey Deschanel as She & Him.

In a press release, Deschanel talks about Ward’s new record, stating “This is a record inspired by people in the industry I have known – heroes and villains in equal measure. She continues to say; “There’s some beautiful moments when you travel for a living, and I’m grateful for being part of an industry that’s taken me around the world so many times – but you quickly learn there’s a perfectly imperfect balance of cold-blooded and warm-blooded animals in the zoo. This record visits the most memorable characters. There’s a lot of very inspirational people I’ve had the pleasure to work with but there are also a few I wish I’d never met. It all tragically ends with an imaginary Griffin Mill-inspired murder ballad.”

Ward himself also talked about the album, stating “This album is a reminder to keep your friends close, your enemies closer and don’t let the ones that just need an extra couple hours of therapy bring you down. Anyway I hope you like it. All names have been changed to protect the innocent.” Check out the tracklist and album artwork below.