Most musicians are driven to prove just how cool they can be. Montreal collective the Dears take the contrary approach. Case in point: They named their latest album, due October 3rd, Gang of Losers.

"It was just a flippant remark you'd say about a group of people," says lead singer Murray Lightburn of the geeked-out title. "But really after much more thought, it became a metaphor for something a little more profound. I think there are so many groups of people and things that make other people feel exclusive, [and] one of the things we're trying to do is transcend that."

If its title doesn't clearly expose the disc's choice subject, it's this: exploring what it means to be an outsider. In conversation, Lightburn readily and repeatedly calls his band a "motley bunch," explaining that audiences -- especially Americans -- may be challenged when listening to and seeing the Dears. "Image-wise, people don't know how to deal with the Dears," Lightburn says. "There's two chicks in the band and the black guy's singing."