From the loss of family members to becoming a father, Evan Cranley of Montreal indie-pop group Stars has experienced a lot this year.

"Making a family and losing family all in a couple of months is a pretty heavy deal," he told me over the phone from somewhere near Bloomington, Indiana. "It was an intense personal time for us, and a spiritual time for us."

Those experiences manifested themselves in The Five Ghosts, Stars' latest offering which they'll be promoting on tour at the London Music Hall, October 22. The band will be playing plenty of old favourites and a plethora of new material, described by critics as their darkest, most synthesizerladen dance album to date.

"I think the synthesis is kind of cool ... because it compliments the subject matter lyrically," said Cranley. "We brought in a couple synths and keyboards … and we didn't really know the gear very well so I find that was kind of a challenge to learn new tools. When you create a new sound there's always a challenge and I always welcome that."

Those electronic creations range from ripping saw-wave synthesizer leads to oftentimes haunting textural ambience. The band haven't let go of their trademark pop sensibilities though, and The Five Ghosts features love songs aplenty, including duets of lead singers Torquil Campbell and Amy Millan (with whom Cranley recently celebrated parenthood).

But one noticeable writing change on The Five Ghosts is Stars' thematic shift to more gloom-filled subject matter, oft contrasted with upbeat melodies, even disco beats. Most surprisingly, Stars has managed to do all this while keeping a distinctive air of sentimentality and romanticism, moods that have become synonymous with the band's songwriting.

"If romance is about loss and love and life - and that seems to be the subject matter with all of our songs ... then that's a huge part of us," said Cranley.

Several friends were also invited to put their mark on The Five Ghosts, including members of Broken Social Scene, which Stars has a long history of collaboration. Outside of Stars, three of five members are tertiary personnel of BSS' ever-expanding roster, a huge undertaking for musicians who already deal with filled plates of solo, side and main projects.

"Individually, we're musicians first before we're a band," said Cranley. "A lot of that collaboration was born out of friendship, so it's kind of like just going and hanging out with your friend and making music and then coming back to your family. That's kind of what it feels like."

Still, that cooperative spirit has served Stars well, and they've made friends cross-country, from the aforementioned Broken Social Scene to Metric, The Besnard Lakes and Feist. And though the sect to which they belong can often be seen as insular, it's these musicians who are most important to Cranley, providing support, inspiration and, most importantly, artistic validation.

"The community that surrounds me and that I'm a part of, these are people who I really want to like my music and ... if they don't then I'm completely crushed. I use them as an audience."

Luckily for Cranley, response to The Five Ghosts has been positive from peers, critics and the wider public. Catch some new and old Stars, as they perform at the London Music Hall on October 22 with Young Galaxy. Tickets are $41.25, available on Ticketmaster.ca.