The Dears are kicking off their tour with Eulogies on May 1 and celebrating by releasing an unreleased b-side once a week. The first track, titled “Halfmast,” is a great track that just missed being included on The Dears latest Missiles, as lead singer Murray Lightburn explains:

“For whatever reason the clock ran out and we just couldn’t fit this onto Missiles. It has this ridiculous long section at the end that features 4(!) simultaneous guitar solos, one of them on a wah-wah pedal. The solos were played  by George Donoso III, Robert E. Benvie, Patrick Krief and Murray Lightburn, recorded in the same session, one after the other. The track was inspiredby many things, but notably, the prospect of a black man running for president.”

Download The Dears “Halfmast”

The Dears w/ Great Northern and Eulogies
5/1/2009 – Bell House – Park Slope, NY
5/2/2009 – Valentines – Albany, NY
5/4/2009 – Bowery Ballroom – New York, NY
5/5/2009 – Johnny Brenda’s – Philadelphia, PA
5/7/2009 – Black Cat – Washington, DC
5/8/2009 – Diesel – Pittsburgh, PA
5/9/2009 – Grog Shop – Cleveland, OH
5/10/2009 – Skully’s – Columbus, OH
5/11/2009 – Magic Stick – Detroit, MI
5/13/2009 – Lakeshore Theatre – Chicago, IL
5/14/2009 – Mojo’s – Columbia, MO
5/16/2009 – Hailey’s – Denton, TX
5/17/2009 – Warehouse – Houston, TX
5/18/2009 – The Parish – Austin, TX
5/21/2009 – Rhythm Room – Phoenix, AZ
5/22/2009 – Casbah – San Diego, CA
5/23/2009 – Echoplex – Los Angeles, CA
5/24/2009 – Independent – San Francisco, CA
5/26/2009 – Doug Fir Lounge – Portland, OR
5/27/2009 – Crocodile Cafe – Seattle, WA