Murray Lightburn

File:DEARS KOKO07a.jpg

Lightburn playing with The Dears at KOKO in London, UK July 13, 2007.

Lightburn playing with The Dears in Orlando, FL - Jan. 25, 2007.

Murray Lightburn playing with The Dears on Canada Day in Toronto, Canada

Murray Lightburn is a Canadian musician, best known as the lead vocalist and principal songwriter for The Dears.

Lightburn has been called "the black Morrissey" due to his vocal similarity (and shared penchant for somewhat dark lyrics) to the former The Smiths lead singer. Incidentally, The Dears toured as Morrissey's opening act during Morrissey's solo tour. His voice is also often compared to that of Damon Albarn. Lightburn claims to be "absolutely f*cking bored to death" with these recurrent comparisons.

In 2005, Lightburn married fellow band member, keyboardist/singer Natalia Yanchak. They have a daughter named Neptune Lightburn.

In 2011, within a review of The Dears' 'Degeneration Street', TC of Clash magazine wrote "Lightburn has become a leading contemporary songwriter, fusing together words of anguish, a suitably pained vocal style and a musical backdrop that is always in waiting to take a song to a higher plane[4]."

References

4.^ http://www.clashmusic.com/reviews/the-dears-degeneration-street