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It seems like everything musical that comes out of Canada at the moment has a big bold export stamp of genius all over it. Last years breakthrough act The Arcade Fire served as a highlight of the wistful, melodic and magnificently orchestrated music that has been poring out of the country on Independent labels and whilst you may not have heard of Wold Parade, The New Pornographers or Animal Collective, a rummage through the Canadian Indie section in your local record store (there probably will be one now) will struggle to pull out a dud. It might be a great time for British mainstream guitar bands, but our cousins across the pond are pushing boundaries that The Kooks and Razorlight couldn't even begin to contemplate, even if they stopped throwing sound bites in each other's direction.
So where do The Dears fit in? Somewhat ironically perhaps, and testified on their debut 'No Cities Left', it's all about England, more typically the smouldering ashes of Britpop and its roots. Front man Murray Lightburn confesses that the group came together over many a late night listening to The Smiths, he singing voice is a cross between a forlorn Damon Albarn and Morrissey himself and most of 'Gang Of Losers' (including the title) resonates with either utopian optimism or a morose depression that has been the lynchpin of intelligent British rock 'n' roll for generations.
The main difference between 'Gang Of Losers' and its predecessor is the sheer accomplished feel to The Dears music. First single 'Ticket To Immortality', despite it’s self-defeating subject matter: "I hang out/ With all the liars now", is driven on spangled electric guitar and military drumming, before dropping into a sing-along crescendo, Lighburn crooning - "The world is really gonna love you". It feels somewhat bipolar, but with the nagging ebb of cheerful optimism rather than despair. And it doesn't stop there. 'Ballad Of Humankindness' is the closest The Dears come to out-and-out cheerfulness. Bouncing on a cello line and skipping beat and harmonised mantra: "No one should have to live all of their life on their own", it has breezy horns and Lightburn tearing his lungs out. It's a standout track, insightful and perfectly arranged to draw on The Dears best points.
If there is a fault here, it's that while 'Gang Of Losers' finds The Dears doing what they do best, it can feel that their card is sometimes overplayed. 'Bandwagoneers' is a good example: melodic and poignant, yes, memorable, no. Much of the band's output is blighted by the fact that they are consistently good at doing the same trick. When, on two-thirds of 'Gang Of Losers' they lift the bar a little higher, the results are superb.
