Daily Dose: The Decemberists, “Once In My Life”
Photo by Holly Andres Music Features the decemberists
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The Decemberists have shared the second single from their forthcoming eighth studio album, I’ll Be Your Girl, out on March 16 via Capitol Records.
Their first single, “Severed,” saw the band taking on a radical new electronic, synth-pop sound as they namedropped unexpected influences like Roxy Music, New Order and Depeche Mode, and they even said it started as a punk song.
Synths follow the band into their new single “Once In My Life,” though the acoustic guitar-led intro and outro give off the familiar comfort of a traditional Decemberists track. However, sandwiched in between the song’s edges is a spacey, synth-driven track that somehow manages to coexist with the indie-folk balladry of frontman Colin Meloy’s lead vocals.
Meloy said the track was elevated by the band in the studio and he commented, “We were playing that 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.”
The Decemberists recently announced their lineup for this year’s Travelers’ Rest Festival in Missoula, Mont. on Aug. 4-5. The band will be performing on both days alongside Death Cab For Cutie, Jeff Tweedy, Mavis Staples, Tune-Yards, Whitney, Parquet Courts, Waxahatchee and Lucy Dacus.
The band announced a U.S. headlining tour in support of their new album, beginning in March and ending in June, with special guests Whitney, Eleanor Friedberger, Tennis, and M. Ward.
Listen to “Once In My Life” below and check out The Decemberists’ upcoming tour dates further down. You can preorder I’ll Be Your Girl here.
The Decemberists Tour Dates:
March
22 – Pomona, Calif. @ Fox Theater ~
23 – Santa Barbara, Calif. @ Arlington Theatre
24 – Tempe, Ariz. @ Innings Festival
April
06 – St. Paul, Minn. @ Palace Theatre
07 – St. Paul, Minn. @ Palace Theatre
08 – Milwaukee, Wis. @ Riverside Theater
10 – Chicago, Ill. @ Chicago Theatre #
11 – Peoria, Ill. @ Peoria Civic Center Theater #
13 – Nashville, Tenn. @ Ryman Auditorium #
14 – Nashville, Tenn. @ Ryman Auditorium #
15 – Atlanta, Ga. @ Coca-Cola Roxy Theatre #
16 – Charleston, S.C. @ North Charleston Performing Arts Center #
18 – Charlotte, N.C. @ Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre #
19 – Durham, N.C. @ Durham Performing Arts Center #
20 – Richmond, Va. @ The National #
21 – Washington, D.C. @ The Anthem #
23 – Geneva, N.Y. @ Smith Opera House #
24 – Cleveland, Ohio @ Agora Theatre #
25 – St. Louis, Mo. @ Peabody Opera House #
May
22 – Morrison, Colo. @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre +
23 – Kansas City, Mo. @ Uptown Theater ~
25 – Ann Arbor, Mich. @ Hill Auditorium ~
26 – Lewiston, N.Y. @ Artpark ~
27 – Boston, Mass. @ Boston Calling Festival
28 – Montreal, Quebec @ MTELUS ~
30 – Toronto, Ontario @ Sony Centre for the Performing Arts ~
31 – Pittsburgh, Pa. @ Benedum Center ~
June
01 – Nelsonville, Ohio @ Nelsonville Music Festival
02 – Indianapolis, Ind. @ Murat Theatre at Old National Centre ~
05 – Louisville, Ky. @ Iroquois Amphitheater ~
07 – Philadelphia, Pa. @ Mann Center for the Performing Arts ^
08 – New Haven, Conn. @ College Street Music Hall ^
09 – Shelburne, Vt. @ The Green at Shelburne Museum ^
10 – Portland, Maine @ State Theatre ^
13 – Brooklyn, N.Y. @ BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival at Prospect Park Bandshell ^
15 – North Adams, Mass. @ MASS MoCA
15-17 – Hunter, N.Y. @ Mountain Jam
21 – Seattle, Wash. @ Paramount Theatre ^
22 – Troutdale, Ore. @ Edgefield ^
23 – Troutdale, Ore. @ Edgefield ^
August
4-5 – Travelers’ Rest – Missoula, MT
November
04 – Dublin, Ireland @ Vicar Street
05 – Glasgow, U.K. @ O2 Academy
07 – London, U.K. @ Eventim Apollo
08 – Bristol, U.K. @ O2 Academy
10 – Leeds, U.K. @ O2 Academy
11 – Nottingham, U.K. @ Rock City
12 – Manchester, U.K. @ Albert Hall
14 – Utrecht, Netherlands @ Grote Zaal TiVre
15 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Paradiso
16 – Berlin, Germany @ Astra
(~ – with Eleanor Friedberger)
(# – with Tennis)
(+ – with Whitney)
(^ – with M. Ward)