Swatting up on the band as I first listened to this record, I read punknews.org describing this album with comparisons to Rites of Spring and As Friends Rust, and while I can see the nods to both, I feel there’s also a case for adding bands like Latterman into the mix, and while they’re not as overtly melodic, there’s definitely a ‘fist in the air’ kind of feeling to Dear Tonight which nicely marries up the intelligent lyrics, emotional outpourings and the varied tempos – the band can switch from hardcore beats (‘Dead Boys’) to something a little slower (‘What We Love Not Are’) very comfortably.
That’s not to say ‘We’re Not Men’ is a complete success. The 12 songs drift in and out a little with some more striking than others. ‘Flags hang High’ isn’t a favourite, but then ‘By Ballot or By Bullet’ comes along and literally blows a hole in your speakers. Not wildly inconsistent, but perhaps hit and miss enough to not have this in your ‘best of’ end of the year lists in 5 months time. That said, this is still worth a listen for the 7 or 8 killer tracks on here.