The Decemberists last full length, 2015’s What A Terrible World, What a Beautiful World, focused on the band’s affinity for folk and storytelling. It’s a theme that seems to carry over into their ninth release, I’ll Be Your Girl, as it’s been a part of frontman Colin Meloy’s songwriting ever since the band’s inception eighteen years ago.

“Oh, for once in my life/could just something go right?” Meloy sings over the classic sounding acoustic guitar, before new elements such as heavy synths and even drum loops take effect around him. Produced by John Congleton (St. Vincent, Future Islands), the new record incorporates the most digital elements of any Decemberists record to date, with Meloy stating that they “were playing [‘Once In My Life’] on the road as a folk-rock anthem thing, but bringing in that obliterating synth really took it somewhere different. The whole band really stepped up and transformed these arrangements.”

I’ll Be Your Girl will be out next week on March 16th, with a special “Exploded Version” featuring four exclusive bonus songs on eight 7” colored vinyl and “elaborate artwork,” as Rolling Stone reports. Their own festival, Traveler’s Rest, is scheduled for August 4th and 5th with features such as Mavis Staples, Jeff Tweedy, and Death Cab for Cutie. Watch the video for “Once in My Life” below.

Photo Credit: Sharon Alagna