Cincinnati indie-pop quartet the Ophelias are coming back with the new album Crocus in a couple of months. We named the Julien Baker-featuring lead single “Neil Young On High” one of the 5 Best Songs Of The Week when it came out, and today they’re offering another bright, string-laden track called “Sacrificial Lamb.” According to vocalist/guitarist Spencer Peppet:

Originally, I didn’t want “Sacrificial Lamb” to be on the album, but Andrea and Mic pushed me to keep it. Andrea’s layered violins transformed the song beyond what I had imagined, and it quickly became a group favorite. That kind of collaboration on Ophelias’ songs is what makes them what they are. This song is a reflection on a night from my freshman year of college, walking home from a party and feeling overwhelmed by a rush of emotions: self-loathing, frustration at the person I wanted love and attention from, longing to be the cool, unaffected girl I wanted to be (and thought I could be if I tried hard enough). I got on the subway and cried, enjoying that no one on the train looked twice.

Jo and I co-directed this video, and we wanted it to feel tongue-in-cheek and playful. We always appreciate a music video with a sense of humor, and wanted to emulate 90’s MTV mixed with slightly glamorous prop comedy. We filmed in January, when it was snowing and freezing cold. It made bouncing on the trampoline tough, but lent a cool texture to the outdoor scenes. We had lots of hand warmers in our pockets! Alex Halstead shot the video, and wanted to support the sense of humor by creating self-aware visuals through stagey, two dimensional compositions and stylized disco lighting.

Watch and listen to “Sacrificial Lamb” below.

Crocus is out 9/24 via Joyful Noise Records. Pre-order it here.