Narrative romanticism for the 21st century is captured eloquently by Canadian rockers, Stars. Its new album, In Our Bedroom After the War, includes tracks about personal ads on the Internet intermixed with tragedies of modern love and modern war.

Drummer Patrick McGee said Stars’ 2004 album, Set Yourself on Fire, which featured playful, exquisite and lush instrumentation on indie pop favorites like “”The Vanishing”” and “”Ageless Beauty,”” put the band on the map.

Formed by vocalist Torquil Campbell and keyboardist Chris Seligman in the ’90s, Stars’ live show always allows the band to feature it’s stories within songs as the main attraction.

Stars recently set off on tour, and McGee said fans have been quite responsive to the new material, which mixes beauty with the horrors of war and lost loves.

“”Set Yourself on Fire really did expand our audience,”” he said. “”Lyrically the new album is very dark, but very beautiful; it’s a little different.””

McGee said the band took time to perfect the album and the live show.

“”We’ve had a lot of time to get our act together,”” McGee said.

Set Yourself on Fire draws inspiration from Fleetwood Mac and Steely Dan.

“”(Steely Dan’s) lyrics were really profound with dark subject matters and ideas impregnated by smooth musical textures,”” he said.

Stars’ live show finds co-lead singers and writers Campbell and Amy Millan adding male and female vocal perspectives, narrating stories back and forth.

“”The vibe is really good on stage,”” McGee said.

The tour follows up the early release of In Our Bedroom After the War. The band struggled with the decision to release its album two months prior to its actual release date, knowing it would leak on Web sites in advance after friend Leslie Feist had a similar problem.

Campbell, Millan and bassist-guitarist Evan Cranley are also members of indie rock band Broken Social Scene, of which Feist is also a member.

“”We have been watching bands struggle with trying to keep their music hidden; what really was the final blow for us was when Feist’s album was downloaded three months before it came out,”” McGee said. “”We put it on iTunes early to give people the option of buying it.””

Despite the last minute changes, In Our Bedroom After the War has fans enthusiastic about the tour, McGee said.

“”We play these shows and people have a good time; it’s a mutual thing,”” McGee said. “”It’s a collective experience at night.””

McGee said their gang of friends and label mates, as well as the fans, keep the band going.

“”People fall in love at a Stars show,”” McGee said. “”That might be reason to come, you might get lucky.””

Even if getting lucky is out of the question, attending a Stars live show does guarantee one thing, McGee said: passionate, beautiful music.

Stars performs tonight with Magnet at 8 at the Rialto Theatre, 318 E. Congress St. Tickets are $18 for this all-ages show.