Not to be confused with Le Tigre offshoot MEN, Brooklyn’s The Men has been building quite the buzz with their upcoming album Open Your Heart. The Men gave us our first taste of Open Your Heart just a few weeks ago, with the album’s title track recently earned a 9/10 score from Beats Per Minute’s Ace Ubas. Now the hard-hitting punk quartet has given us another peek at the hotly anticipated record by making the closing track “Ex-Dreams” available for streaming.
“Ex Dreams” begins with a furious instrumental freak-out that so persistent that it seems The Men are never going to drop the intensity. Tension resolution finally comes at 1:45 as the swirling guitars suddenly stop, leaving only the filthy drum pummeling behind. This is what constitutes a breather in the world of The Men, and the vocals seize the opportunity to declare an Iowan exit before the eye of the storm dissipates. It’s a thrilling, melodic blend of punk, garage, and psychedelia. Although the rest of Open Your Heart has yet to be heard, it’s fitting that “Ex Dreams” is the closer because if offers what is sure to be a big finale on what is shaping up to be album heavy of fuzzy riffs and full of raucous energy.
Open Your Heart is available on March 6th courtesy of Sacred Bones.
