Sharing a fondness for sophisticated soul and pop artists (the Smiths, New Order, Marvin Gaye, et al.), Stars were formed by Torquil Campbell and Chris Seligman in New York. Along with friends Evan Cranley (also of Big Rude Jake) and Amy Millan (who contributed to the soundtrack for the film Drowning Mona), the band relocated to Montreal. Their debut full-length, Nightsongs, was released in early 2001, followed by an EP, The Comeback, later that year. Besides playing with Stars, Campbell has appeared in films, plays, and television (including Law & Order and Sex and the City). Seligman has performed with several orchestras, including the orchestra for the Broadway musical The Scarlet Pimpernel. Before 2002 came to an end, the band headed back into the studio to record a sophomore effort. The soft-hued Heart was released to critical acclaim in the U.K. before Christmas; Heart appeared stateside on the Canadian label Arts & Crafts during summer 2003. The ambitious Set Yourself on Fire followed two years later, and all of its tracks were creatively remixed by the band's peers. Stars released these songs on a new album, Do You Trust Your Friends?, in 2007. That July, as a preemptive measure to beat any blog leaks of their next record, the group made In Our Bedroom After the War available for download two months before its actual September release date.