Review: The Dears – No Cities Left

One of the most beautiful records I own, without a doubt. The Dears are powerful, and the frontman has the most incredible, moving and just generally perfect voice, capturing about as much mood and atmosphere as any music could ever hold.

I came across The Dears a long time ago. I was probably about 16 and they were on some TV show. Instantly, the vocals caught my attention. At this stage in my life, I wasn’t fond of gentle music, but I couldn’t resist the charm of The Dears.

No Cities Left was my first Dears album. I don’t doubt that it’s their best work, even if I haven’t listened to everything else they’ve done. It captivates from start to finish, and despite being so peaceful most of the way through, you want to keep turning that volume dial.

Don’t get me wrong, not every track on here is strong and moving. Some sort of just blend into the crowd, for example, Don’t Lose the Faith. But others make it an outstanding record. Who Are You, Defenders of the Universe and 22: The Death of all Romance, for example, are incredible and so deeply touching. I challenge you to not be emotionally affected by them. Dry eyes and this album do not combine! It’s all about pain and heartbreak, and you can tell that without even paying attention to the lyrics. It’s a feeling that’s present throughout. From the haunting and sometimes sparse guitar work to the strings section (where it appears) to even the tired and depressed sounding bass, you know this is music about loss and hurt. Don’t dare stick it on to cheer yourself up!

Every time I listen to No Cities Left, I get a tear in my eye. Every time I listen I also feel my heart ache. That’s how powerful it is. It can be so simple in places (for example, at the end of Expect the Worst/’Cos She’s a Tourist, where we’re left with simple guitar string plucking – the effect of emptiness that it gives off is highly depressing), but it works so well. The Dears know how to create beautiful agony. It doesn’t need complexity, simply due to how well it is delivered. “I’m so very terrified by the thought of using you” is how Pinned Together, Falling Apart starts out, and this is followed by “stop telling me, I don’t want to know”. Simple but so amazingly effective. It’s instantly relatable.

But you know, it’s not all gloomy, painful melodies. Never Destroy Us has a pretty decent and relatively heavy guitar solo, and it’s really not a gloomy song. It’s even shouty! This gives the listener a much needed break to the gloom. But alas, it is short lived, because then enters one of the most painful tracks on the record – Warm and Sunny Days.

If you want pretty as hell suffering, No Cities Left is exactly what you should go for. Incredible record, one which I recommend anyone to listen to, especially those who have felt that old feeling of a broken heart and don’t want some whiny teenager singing about his self-pity.