The Things We Left Behind touches upon nearly every facet of Blue Rodeo’s expansive roots-rock sound. For a quarter-century, the Canadian combo has drawn upon early-‘70s-style country-rock for inspiration, with occasional nods towards Springsteen and Graham Parker. As before, singer/songwriters Jim Cuddy and Greg Keelor form the band’s creative nucleus, sharing a penchant for thoughtful lyrics and folk-derived melodies while remaining individual in style. Cuddy generally deals in sunny, pop-oriented fare like “Candice” and “Arizona Dust,” though “One More Night” matches a disturbing lyric with an upbeat tune. Keelor’s compositions are more melancholy, with an air of rustic bleakness about them — his “Don’t Let the Darkness” and the string-accented “Gossip” are especially effective mood pieces. While these songs are mostly on the succinct side, “Venus Rising” allows the band to stretch out and get noisy with a feedback-drenched guitar passage. Michael Boguski’s stirring gospel piano licks add the final touch to these evocative, heartfelt tracks.

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