Anyone who has seen Guardians of the Galaxy will attest that one of its strongest assets is its overall sound, both in the various jams from Star-Lord’s Awesome Mixtape to the thrilling score by composer Tyler Bates. So its good news, then, that it was confirmed today that Bates will be returning to take on composing duties on Guardians of the Galaxy 2 or, to be exact, Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2. Director James Gunn has already confirmed that the hotly anticipated sequel will begin filming this coming February in Atlanta, and that the story of the “more emotional” film will focus largely on Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) and his relationship to his father, whose identity was teased an awful lot in the original but was never revealed entirely. Gunn also has confirmed that the first draft of the script has been completed, and that he will once again choose all the songs for the next Awesome Mixtape personally.

As for Bates, this would make for another minor coup for the composer, who has done some excellent work in television, scoring Salem and now-defunct series like Californication and Low Winter Sun. 2014 was a big year for the composer, providing the backing music for both Guardians of the Galaxy and the surprisingly nimble and whip-smart John Wick, which is also set to produce a sequel sometime next year. Even before that, however, Bates was lending his talents to an impressive rage of minor and major masterworks, from William Friedkin‘s suavely diabolic Killer Joe and Ti West‘s The Sacrament to a variety of films from Rob Zombie and Mario Van Peebles‘ deeply personal Baadasssss! Along with Guardians of the Galaxy 2, he’s also set to score Emilio Estevez‘s The Public, reteaming with the actor-director for the first time since Estevez’s The Way. He’s also, of course, teamed up with Gunn before for Slither, the director’s often delightful creature feature, and their familiarity with one another is likely what gave Guardians of the Galaxy such a distinct sound. One can only hope that the same will hold true for their next collaboration.