Half Moon Run hit my radar back in 2012 when the Canadian indie-rockers opened for Metric during a gig at the Fillmore. The band's harmonies and intricate instrumentation caught my ear and I was quickly a fan — another reason to be sure and check out the opening acts and not just show up for the headliners.

While the band's debut album, Dark Eyes, was marked by CSN-style harmonies and splashes of falsetto, the followup, Sun Leads Me On, is marked by further exploration into Radiohead-like rhythms, electronic backdrops and a deeper infusion of '70s stylings.

The album doesn't have the blissful wonderment of the harmony-focused first album, but there's enough going on here to make it interesting. While they conjure up moments reminiscent of the first album, it's refreshing that Half Moon Run's sophomore album doesn't just sound like a rehashing. They've thinned out the ever-present harmonies and look for lusher soundscapes — varying between acoustic and electronic.

Sun isn't as ear-catching as Dark Eyes on first listen, but it's a mature followup which expands the band's catalog in a nice direction providing a counter-balance to the more coherent debut album.

Dark Eyes allows the band to stretch out and find a much broader identity — from the gorgeous simplicity within the acoustic finger-picking of "Devil May Care" to the spacey wonderment of "Turn Your Love."

The band hasn't been back in town since that September night three years ago, but here's to hoping this new album will bring a new tour and a date around the Queen City. I'd love to hear how it all comes together in the live setting.