After taking more than two decades to return to music-making with their last release (and first full-length), Always & Always, The Julies have taken less than two years to return yet again. This time with new single, "The Heartbreak Life," an ode to the reality that life isn't just endless possibility but also certain heartbreak.

Memories and reconciliations collide as the track builds from a rumbling rhythm and bittersweet jangle into a powerful, emotive dreampop anthem. "It's a very visual song for me," says singer Chris Newkirk, "so I wanted the lyrics to feel a bit like scattered polaroids."

"The Heartbreak Life" is more than just a single for the band—it's a product of their first attempts at self-recording (unless you count a very obscure 4-track demo contributed to an indie compilation in the mid-'90s). The song is part of a larger effort by The Julies to release music while they continue work on their next album. Conceived late in the Always & Always sessions, it continues its spirit, even though it didn't quite make it across the finish line in time.