Someone write Ben Gibbard a letter telling him that because he took so long to write a follow-up to Give Up, another band did it for him. Set Yourself On Fire, the third album from the Canadian band Stars, is a soundscape littered with synth-pop melodies, airy atmospheres and a warm feeling of nostalgia for a place you’ve never been but can’t wait to explore.

From the opening exclamation, “When there’s nothing left to burn you have to set yourself on fire!” to the final line on the album, “I’m alive,” Stars ignite a multitude of feelings in the listener. As soon as the album starts with “Your Ex-Lover is Dead,” the floating vocals of Torquil Campbell and Amy Millan thrust the listener into a sonic romance filled with feelings of sorrow and victory that layer a tragic-sounding violin and horn base.

Set Yourself On Fire should spark the interest of any experimental music fan, especially with one of the album’s most shining tracks, “Soft Revolution.”

Stars prove they aren’t all about crafting an aural dream, they use the album’s title track to create a sudden sense of speed, like that of a shooting star weaving through the universe.

Most of the songs on this sprawling 13-track disc feature luxoriously over-dramatic musical backgrounds but under the sound, the lyrics carry a timeless sense of love, triumph and rapture.

Stars throw out all of the instrumental stops on the album, using the standard drum-bass- guitar formula, but add texture to their sound with violin, cello, viola, french horn, saxophone, keyboards and a glockenspiel.

Listeners of the Postal Service will enjoy the beauty of Stars latest disc which sets out to prove that “setting yourself on fire” may be one of the best things to do all year.