“When Natalie Merchant was fifteen, a year before she began her music career in the band 10,000 Maniacs, she put a picture of a statue of Joan of Arc up on her wall,” BBC Radio 4 Front Row presenter Samira Ahmed says of her guest. “The image adorns the cover of her new album, Keep Your Courage, a celebration of women in myth and history, ancient and modern, and a celebration of love of all kinds—familial, platonic, and romantic.” You can hear their conversation about the album and more here via Spotify and Apple Music:

Keep Your Courage is Natalie Merchant’s tenth solo studio album and the first of new material since her 2014 self-titled record. An eclectic album, produced by Merchant, it features lush orchestrations throughout, two duets sung with vocalist Abena Koomson-Davis of Resistance Revival Chorus, contributions from the Celtic folk group Lúnasa and Syrian virtuoso clarinetist Kinan Azmeh, and horn arrangements by jazz trombonist Steve Davis. There are nine original songs by Merchant and an interpretation of a song by Ian Lynch of the Irish band Lankum. The vinyl LP edition includes four bonus tracks from earlier albums, previously unreleased on vinyl. Natalie Merchant Store and Nonesuch Store pre-orders made before this Monday, April 3, include access to an exclusive virtual pre-release listening event on Thursday, April 6 ,via FlyMachine featuring songs from the album and a conversation between Merchant and a host.