Murray Lightburn

Who is Murray Lightburn?

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 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 fucking 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 plain[4]."