Incorporating influences as far-flung as Tool, Bright Eyes, the Walkmen, and Radiohead into their sound, Arizona quintet Dear and the Headlights hitch the impassioned, nearly screamo vocals of frontman Ian Metzger to an organic instrumental backdrop that shifts easily between rootsy, piano-driven passages and eruptive, noisy ones. Formed in the mid '00s and solidified by 2005, the band built a following via extensive touring and several releases on Equal Vision Records.