I'll Be Your Girl | Mint (M) Mint (M)

BRAND NEW

Label:    Capitol Records – B002785301
Format:    Vinyl, LP, Album, 180g, Black
Country:    US
Released:    2018
Genre:    Rock
Style:    Alternative Rock, Folk Rock

A1        Once In My Life
A2        Cutting Stone
A3        Severed
A4        Starwatcher
A5        Tripping Alone
A6        Your Ghost
B1        Everything Is Awful
B2        Sucker's Prayer
B3        We All Die Young
B4        Rusalka, Rusalka/Wild Rushes
B5        I'll Be Your Girl

Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Capitol Records, LLC
Copyright © – Capitol Records, LLC
Manufactured By – Capitol Records
Lacquer Cut At – Capitol Mastering
Mastered At – GZ Media – 168803E
Pressed By – Precision Record Pressing – 10-84292
Mastered By – IS*
Barcode: 6 02567 23669 6

The shorthand description of I'll Be Your Girl, the Decemberists' eighth album, is that it's the record where the band decide to ditch the past and engage with the modern world, layering their folk-rock with synthesizers and other contemporary accouterments. The intentional irony is, that this modern sound -- shepherded by producer John Congleton, best-known for helming acclaimed albums by St. Vincent, Angel Olsen, and Future Islands -- is predicated on the New Wave of the '70s and '80s, a sound that would seem like a throwback for nearly any other group, but in the hands of the Decemberists, such swaths of synths provide a vibrant, colorful jolt. Congleton doesn't merely expand the band's palette, he acts as an effective editor for Colin Meloy, keeping the proceedings swift and clean. With most of the songs clocking in well under five minutes -- the opening "Once in My Life" and near-closing "Rusalka, Rusalka Wild Rushes," which stretches out over eight minutes, are the exceptions that put the rest of the record into perspective -- I'll Be Your Girl plays almost like a series of short stories, a feeling that is accentuated by how each cut feels like its own entity, yet the 11 songs form a tapestry. "Once in My Life" kicks off the record with washes of melancholy, "Severed" pulses to a rhythm straight out of Gary Numan, "Starwatcher" is a throwback to classic Decemberists ballads, "Your Ghost" gallops to a gothic beat, and "We All Die Young" is a glam stomp through and through. While Meloy's lyrics are sharply honed and evocative, it's this cavalcade of sounds that not only makes I'll Be Your Girl compelling, but distinctive among Decemberists albums. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

• Media Condition: Mint (M)
• Sleeve Condition: Mint (M)
• Format: Vinyl
• Genre: FOLK
• Format Type: LP
• Released: 03/16/2018