Origins The band began as a side project of Casey Crescenzo when he was a full-time member of
the Receiving End of Sirens. The Dear Hunter was originally intended as a vehicle for music Crescenzo had written that did not fit with the sound of the Receiving End of Sirens. Crescenzo affirmed that: In the winter of 2005 Crescenzo recorded the
Dear Ms. Leading demos. He created 10 copies on burned CDs that were circulated among his friends and posted online for download. While elements and characters featured on the demos would reappear on the subsequent
Acts, Crescenzo has confirmed that there was a transformation in how he represented these themes and persons; while the story had its origins in his personal life, the
Acts removed most autobiographical elements in favor of fiction:
Act I: The Lake South, The River North (2007) In May 2006, Crescenzo was "asked to leave" the Receiving End of Sirens Crescenzo has remarked that the protagonist is "not a hero at all" and that he doesn't do "a single good thing or smart thing in any of the stories".
Act II: The Meaning of, and All Things Regarding Ms. Leading (2007) Act II: The Meaning of, and All Things Regarding Ms. Leading was released May 22, 2007. Originally, the band had written almost 2 hours of music for the album, but managed to trim the run time down to 80 minutes so as to fit on a single compact disc. The band supported the album by touring with
As Tall As Lions,
Saves the Day,
Say Anything,
Thrice,
Chris Conley,
The Format,
Scary Kids Scaring Kids,
Boys Night Out,
Circa Survive,
Ours, and
Fear Before the March of Flames. The band filmed a music video for the song "The Church and the Dime". A book based on the story of
Act II was released as part of the deluxe edition of
Act III: Life and Death. Artist Kent St. John was selected to do the illustrations. Prior to a string of dates with
Circa Survive, Josh Rheault and brothers Sam and Luke Dent left the band. Temporary replacements for the tour dates included Cliff Sarcona and Julio Tavarez of
As Tall As Lions (drums and bass, respectively), Christopher Tagliaferro of Tiger Riot (bass), and Andy Wildrick of
The Junior Varsity (guitar/keys). Wildrick later joined the band as a permanent member, along with Sagan Jacobson of Crown Atlantic on bass and Crescenzo's brother Nick on drums. The Dear Hunter embarked on their first headlining tour in mid-2008 with
Lydia,
Eye Alaska, and
You, Me, and Everyone We Know. On December 9, 2008, it was announced that Nate Patterson, Crescenzo's former bandmate in The Receiving End of Sirens, would begin playing bass for the band, as Sagan Jacobson had left.
Act III: Life and Death (2009) After the headlining tour, the Dear Hunter entered the studio to record
Act III: Life and Death. During this time, former bassist Josh Rheault announced on tour that he had rejoined the Dear Hunter on acoustic guitar, backing vocals, and keyboards.
Act III was released on June 23, 2009 on
Triple Crown Records.
The Color Spectrum (2011) Between the release of
Act II and
Act III, Crescenzo was also conceiving a multi-album arc related to the color spectrum. At some point prior to the completion of
The Color Spectrum, Josh Rheault and Erick Serna both left the band to pursue their respective musical projects. Subsequent to the release of
The Color Spectrum, the Dear Hunter performed the entire three-hour set of EPs in a single show and released it as a DVD, entitled
The Color Spectrum DVD.
Migrant (2013) The Dear Hunter went in to the studio in 2012 with producer Mike Watts to record
Migrant, the first album under Crescenzo's new imprint label, Cave & Canary Goods, which is a unit of
Equal Vision Records. Prior to recording the album, Crescenzo expressed his excitement over working with Watts and further noted that
Migrant represents another deferral of the next
Act record, a consideration that Crescenzo weighed before moving forward.
Migrant, which is the first album released by the Dear Hunter that does not have a concept, The album debuted at No. 39 on the
Billboard 200 selling approximately 7,000 copies, both career highs for the band. The Dear Hunter then embarked on a Fall US Tour with bands
CHON and
Gates.
Act V: Hymns with the Devil in Confessional (2016) On June 22, 2016, Crescenzo announced via Facebook that
Act V: Hymns with the Devil in Confessional was set for a September 9, 2016 release. The album debuted at No. 48 on the US
Billboard 200 and No. 6 on the Independent Albums chart, becoming their 2nd best charting success so far. The band embarked on a month-long North American tour with
Gavin Castleton and
Eisley in late September, finishing with a show in San Francisco accompanied by Awesöme Orchestra. The show focused mainly on Act IV and V and a few tracks off the first Acts. In an interview with
Pop Matters, Crescenzo announced the next Dear Hunter record will be unrelated to the Acts.
All Is as All Should Be (2017) On September 12, 2017, the Dear Hunter announced a headlining tour with
The Family Crest and VAVÁ. On September 13, the Dear Hunter announced a six track EP titled
All Is as All Should Be. It was released on December 1, 2017 through Cave And Canary Goods.
The Fox and the Hunt (2020) On February 14, 2020, the Dear Hunter released an orchestral LP in collaboration with composer Brian Adam McCune and San Francisco-based group Awesöme Orchestra through Cave and Canary Goods. The Fox and the Hunt repurposes and expands upon orchestral parts recorded for Act IV and Act V into a fully realized instrumental album.
Departure of Castleton, The Indigo Child, and S.S. Neverender (2021) On June 12, 2021, Gavin Castleton announced his departure from the band via their Pillar account (a subscription-based online community in which the band actively participates). Castleton cited being at a point in his life that he cannot "[contribute] the appropriate time, energy and focus" that the "many amazing and ambitious TDH events and releases" would require. He also stated these events and releases were "on the near horizon". The band wished Castleton well in the same post. On October 13, 2021, the Dear Hunter announced an upcoming event for their next release "The Indigo Child" set for October 22, 2021, on their Instagram and Facebook pages. On October 22, 2021, the band released
The Indigo Child EP, consisting of orchestral works based on their short film of the same name, and the future concept album saga. On October 25–29, 2021, the Dear Hunter (along with touring keyboardist Aiden Earley) took part on the S.S. Neverender cruise along with
Coheed and Cambria.
Antimai, Sunya (2022–present) On February 4, 2022, the Dear Hunter announced an upcoming American tour with special guests
The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die and Tanner Merritt of
O'Brother. On July 1, 2022, they released their eighth studio album
Antimai through Cave and Canary. The album is the first record in the band's sci-fi/fantasy-themed "Indigo Child" saga, introducing the titular city and its geographical and social structure on a fictional world. Prior to the release of
Sunya, the band teased concept art of Antimai's rings every few days on Instagram. This led to an
alternate reality game (ARG) that was released on January 31, 2026. Among the many puzzles and teasers was a 20-day countdown, which ended on February 20, 2026, when they released a new single entitled "The Glass Desert I - Giants". The song is from their upcoming album,
Sunya, which released March 20, 2026. After the release of this video the ARG was continually updated, expanding on the worldbuilding of
Antimai and leading to the release of another single, "Marauders". ==Members==