In support of their upcoming album “Degeneration Street,” acclaimed Montreal rock band The Dears will perform new single “Blood” on The Late Show with David Letterman this Friday, February 11th. Known for a commanding live show that has connected the group to a legion of adoring fans and critics around the world, The Dears will embark on a worldwide headlining tour March 4th, which will include a stop at this year’s SXSW Music Festival.

This new collection of mesmerizing orchestral rock and deeply evocative pop is definitely for fans of the band’s operatic hysteria and is the ultimate culmination of the band’s unhinged onstage catharsis and studio sophistication.

Spin Magazine raves Degeneration Street “heads back to the big, Brit-inspired sounds of 2003′s No Cities Left … Singer-guitarist Murray Lightburn still shoots for Smiths-like profundity and emotional resonance – there’s talk of G-d and bearing crosses – but this time he’s got the hooks to back it up.“ Songs such as “’Thrones’ brims with passion, as Lightburn alternates between a bold vocal melody and an angry shout.“ Entertainment Weekly goes on to say “The Dears were churning out sweeping, blustery epics long before ”dramatic indie rock from Canada” was its own subgenre, and Degeneration Street, sees them perfecting the template. Singer Murray Lightburn’s somersaulting pipes soar over a tangle of brawny guitars, and while their tense theater-rock evokes everyone from Coldplay to Arcade Fire, the Dears are expert practitioners” Rolling Stone adds “A four-part song cycle involving apocalyptic prophecy and frozen hell, Degeneration Street often reads as art-rock with a death-metal storyline … Lightburn’s amoebic tenor is still the main attraction: soul crooner one minute, punk shouter the next.” Alternative Press simply calls “Degeneration Street” “impeccable.”

Watch a live performance of “Blood” from Mexico City here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQTkBuSMvFQ

“Degeneration Street” will be released this coming Tuesday, February 15th on Pheromone Recordings in canada and Dangerbird Records worldwide.

TOUR DATES (more dates to be announced shortly): With Eulogies

March 4th Sugar Victoria, BC March 5th The Venue Vancouver, BC March 7th Crocodile Café Seattle, WA March 9th Slim’s San Francisco, CA March 10th The Troubadour Los Angeles, CA March 17th SXSW Austin, TX March 18th Dangerbird Records Showcase Austin, TX March 19th SXSW Austin, TX
April 13th Frannz Club Berlin
April 14th AB Club Brussels
April 15th Le Fleche D’Or Paris
April 16th Melkweg Amsterdam
April 18th Hoxton Bar & Kitchen London
April 19th Borderline London
April 20th Ruby Lounge Manchester
April 21st King Tuts Glasgow

www.thedears.org/
www.facebook.com/TheDears www.myspace.com/thedears http://twitter.com/thedears