If you delve deeper into No Cities Left, you’ll hear a surprisingly deep, resonant tone to the band’s performance, as the four members (update: they’re now a sextet) draw from a rich palette of musical influences. And sure, Lightburn’s vocals are very reminiscent of both Morrissey and Blur’s Damon Albarn, and in fact, the resemblance is absolutely uncanny at times, but it’s Lightburn’s songwriting, and the skill of the band behind him, that really set the band apart from just simple Smiths/Blur mimicking. Lightburn, a skeptic would probably immediately blow off The Dears as being little more than a collection of Britpop imitators who, while pulling it off convincingly, are a decade too late. Upon hearing the Anglophilic affectations of singer Murray A. That said, No Cities Left is a very good album, just not quite the timeless classic some would lead you to believe.

First off, it must be made known that the wild, over the top praise the album received in Canada was fueled by a heavy dose of native pride by writers eager to plug a talented band. Instead, The Dears have been left to toil away, penniless and in anonymity, hoping that their next record will be the one that breaks them.Īll hope is not lost, however, as No Cities Left is getting a much needed push down south, as the album is finally being released in America, thanks to spinART records.

National music channels Much Music and Much More Music did little to give the band mainstream exposure, and commercial radio, as they always do north of the border, continued to turn a blind eye to Canada’s exploding indie rock scene. Despite the critical praise, despite the respect from fellow musicians, commercial success evaded the band during a year that many had hoped would be theirs.

A respected band among their Canadian indie rock peers, The Dears have been name-checked many times most recently, both Metric and Canadian sensation Sam Roberts have gone on national television, and plugged their hard-working friends. Back in April of 2003, when Montreal indie stalwarts The Dears released their second album, No Cities Left, the Canadian music press fell over themselves in ecstatic rapture, whipping themselves into a wild, hyperbolic frenzy, hailing the record as an instant classic, something you’d normally expect from the British media, not a bunch of humble Canadians.

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