The Boston-based post-hardcore band (not to be confused with the Atlanta-based indie rock band Deerhunter or the 1978 war drama flick “The Deer Hunter”) was started as a side project by Casey Crescenzo, formerly of post-hardcore band The Receiving End of Sirens. The Deer Hunter also features Casey’s brother Nick Crescenzo on drums, Erick Serna on guitar and Josh Rheault on keyboard/guitar. Casey handles vocals/piano/guitar and also acts as the band’s lyricist/producer.

The Crescenzo brothers and co. join Circa Survive on tour beginning July 23 at The Rock in Tucson, Ariz., with gigs booked through an Aug. 1 performance at Stingers in San Bernardino, Calif.

Additional stops include Rio Theatre in Santa Cruz, Calif. (July 27), Jerry’s Pizza & Pub in Bakersfield, Calif. (July 30) and Electric Theatre in Saint George, Utah (July 31).

The Cohead And Cambria support tour kicks off Aug. 12 at Hollywood Palladium in Hollywood, Calif., and wraps up Aug. 31 at NorVa in Norfolk, Va.

The tour also features shows at The Joint in Las Vegas (Aug. 13), Sunshine Theatre in Albuquerque, N.M. (Aug. 16), Club 101 in El Paso, Texas (Aug. 17), The Nautical Pavilion in Cleveland (Aug. 26) and Ches A Rena in Cheswick, Pa. (Aug. 28).

Before releasing another full-length studio album to follow 2009’s Act III: Life and Death, The Dear Hunter plans to put out a series of 9 EPs called the Color Spectrum. The EPs will features songs inspired by colors of the spectrum including red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet along with white and black as bookends to the series.

“A few years ago I was thinking of what we would do when we were finished with the ACT records,” Casey Crescenzo said. “The thought just kind of happened, and the idea for the project quickly developed.  For the longest time, the idea was just to keep it a project that the band would complete on time off.  After the initial shock of being an independent band again, we found comfort in the idea that we were now free to tackle any project we saw fit.  Knowing that no label would back a project like this, we saw no better time than the present to approach this lingering idea.

“At its heart, this project is about our growth as songwriters and musicians, and the idea has always been to challenge ourselves.  We have never limited ourselves to a single genre, and this idea gave us a perfect opportunity to explore all of our influences and express ourselves with no restrictions.  With the Color Spectrum EPs, we hope to faithfully represent our interpretations of the color spectrum on a sonic and emotional level.”

Click here for The Dear Hunter’s website.