• News

• All

Nov 08, 2018 By Christopher Roberts Photography by Richmond Lam The Dears

Murray A. Lightburn, frontman of Montréal’s The Dears, has announced a new solo album, Hear Me Out, and we’re pleased to premiere its first single, “Belleville Blues.” “I need you to save me from myself,” Lightburn pleads in the chorus, perhaps singing to his wife and Dears bandmate Natalia Yanchak. It’s an impassioned song about not being dragged down by the past and not being afraid to rely on a partner to help you get through the day-to-day stresses of modern life. Check out the single below, followed by the album’s tracklist and cover art.

Lightburn had this to say about “Belleville Blues” in a statement to us: “When I was growing up, my old man never said or expressed much about what was going on with him. As a grown man with a family of my own, I find myself shielding my children and my wife from stuff that is bothering me or stressing me out. It’s a choice, I reckon, to keep a lot of stuff bottled but manageable. Sometimes the weight-the pressure to make life a smooth ride for others-becomes heavy. Having a partner that won’t judge you for breaking down a bit is something I think should never be taken for granted. On a personal level, why this song is called ‘Belleville Blues’ is much more complicated than that. It’s a town somewhere between Montréal and Toronto along the 401, a road we as a family have been driven upon literally hundreds of times over the years. It’s not a long drive but sometimes we’ll stop there and stay in a hotel to break up the journey. I suppose that’s the metaphor.”

Lightburn wrote and arranged all the song on Hear Me Out, which was produced by Lightburn and Howard Bilerman (Leonard Cohen, Arcade Fire, Godspeed You Black Emperor!). It was recorded and mixed at Hotel2Tango in Montréal. Lightburn plays a lot of different instruments on the album: lead and background vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, organ, Mellotron, piano, tubular bells, vibraphone, tambourine, and maracas. The album also features guest vocals from Catherine McCandless of Young Galaxy and Ariel Engel of Broken Social Scene and La Force, as well as Hawksley Workman on bongos. Plus the album includes the following players: Jeff Luciani (drums), Rémi-Jean Leblanc (bass guitar), Steve Raegele (electric guitar and acoustic guitar), Gregory Burton (piano), and Liam O’Neil (piano and tenor saxophone).

Under the Radar and The Dears go way back. We first discovered the band as they were preparing to release their 2003 sophomore album, No Cities Left, which still remains one of our favorites and made the Top 20 in our Top 200 Albums of the Decade list in our Best of the Decade issue in 2009. We then put Lightburn on the cover of our print magazine in honor of The Dears’ 2006 album, Gang of Losers. The Dears’ last album was 2017’s Times Infinity Volume Two, which was the follow-up to 2015’s Times Infinity Volume One. Lightburn’s last solo album was 2013’s Mass: Light.

Hear Me Out Tracklist:

01. Anew
02. Centre of My Universe
03. To the Top
04. I Give Up
05. Hear Me Out
06. Belleville Blues
07. Changed My Ways
08. Fan Fiction (Ballad of a Genius)
09. I’m Not Broken
10. When They See Me

Support Under the Radar on Patreon.