I'm in love with this record and this band. This is punk rock for grown-ups. It's not jaded, but slightly weary. It's intelligent, political and romantic without being obtuse, preachy or sappy. It's simply beautiful. I'm constantly being asked to describe their sound (because I tend to talk about them a lot!) and I don't know how. I can not compare them with anyone else and they defy the usual genre lumping. When I first heard them I thought of the first time I heard the first Fugazi record in 1989. Not because The Weakerthans sound anything like Fugazi, but because the music they play is so original and honest, and made with such intelligence and heart. John K. Sampson's lyrics are amazingly poetic and touching. I've been lucky enough to see them live 3 times in the past few months (traveling as far as possible to do so!) and they're even better live!