Okkervil River Share New Track/Video, “Pulled Up The Ribbon”

Austin folk rockers Okkervil River have released the second single from their forthcoming album, In The Rainbow Rain, out on April 27 via ATO Records.

In The Rainbow Rain will be the band’s ninth studio album and it follows their 2016 album Away.

“Pulled Up The Ribbon” comes after the previously released “Don’t Move Back to LA” and it’s a dramatic departure from the more traditional folk/pop sound of the lead single. “Pulled Up The Ribbon” features rich layers of distorted guitars, soaring keyboards, deep bass guitar tones and self-assured lead vocals, combining for a melodic psych-rock and synth-pop crossover track that just works on every level.

The song’s video, directed by Christopher Good, features footage of the band performing on a rock formation while decked out in American Revolution-era uniforms as the waves crash in around them. They also strum an oversized guitar with the help of six people and later in the video, several of the women, still in their Revolution-era hats, turn into mermaids while playing their instruments underwater.

Bandleader Will Sheff says of the band’s new album, “I wanted to make a record where a sense of kindness felt encoded into the music.” According to a press release that describes their drastic new sound:

Sheff makes a startling left turn from the their critically-lauded and inward-looking 2016 album Away, crafting an exuberant declaration of hope. In place of Away’s somber strings and acoustic textures, In the Rainbow Rain is full of dazzling color, spattered with starbursts of electric guitar, big blooms of synth, and a chorus of backing vocals. It’s a buoyant and playful record, but also open and emotionally vulnerable.

Watch the video for “Pulled Up The Ribbon” below and listen to a Paste Cloud recording of Sheff reading a selection from White Walls by Tatyana Tolstaya. Check out the band’s upcoming tour dates further down and preorder In The Rainbow Rain here.

Okkervil River Tour Dates:

April
27 – Brooklyn, N.Y. @ Rough Trade NYC (Album Release Show)

May
20 – Washington, D.C. @ The Black Cat
21 – Carboro, N.C. @ Cat’s Cradle
22 – Atlanta, Ga. @ Aisle 5
24 – Dallas, Texas @ The Kessler Theater
25 – Houston, Texas @ The Heights Theater
29 – Phoenix, Ariz. @ The Crescent Ballroom
31 – Los Angeles, Calif. @ Teregram Ballroom

June
01 – Santa Ana, Calif. @ Constellation Room
02 – San Francisco, Calif. @ Bimbo’s 365 Club
04 – Seattle, Wash. @ Neumos
05 – Portland, Ore. @ Wonder Ballroom
07 – Salt Lake City, Utah @ The State Room
08 – Denver, Colo. @ Bluebird Theater
09 – Omaha, Neb. @ The Waiting Room
11 – St. Paul, Minn. @ Turf Club
12 – Chicago, Ill. @ Thalia Hall
13 – Detroit, Mich. @ El Club
14 – Toronto, Ontario @ Horseshoe Tavern
15 – Woodstock, N.Y. @ Colony
16 – Boston, Mass. @ Royale