songs, they can dismiss them.' But I have the most confidence in Dan's songs because I'm totally outside of him, looking in. I'm just a fan of him." The song "Breakin' the Law" was taken from Destroyer's first album We'll Build Them a Golden Bridge. The group vocals at the end of "Breakin' the Law" are credited to the Camp Northstar Kids' Chorus, a reference to the Canadian comedy film Meatballs. The chorus is actually every member of the band singing. Newman stated, "I like the fact that people think that it's a kids' group ... We made ourselves sound like a giant group, but we ended up sounding like little kids. I love the fact that in the Rolling Stone review they mention the chorus of kids. I just think it's great that people actually believe that, because it's such a fucking ridiculous thing for a band to do." Style Tim DiGravina of Allmusic called Mass Romantic an album that "displays a decidedly power pop form of indie rock." DiGravina noted comparison per individual song with "the Beatles ('The Mary Martin Show') to David Bowie ('The Slow Descent into Alcoholism') to T.Rex ('Mystery Hours') to Todd Rundgren ('The Fake Headlines')." Jim Caliguiry of The Austin Chronicle noted, "They borrow from Cheap Trick, the Beach Boys, Big Star, Roxy Music, Buzzcocks, and Robyn Hitchcock". Rolling Stone also made comparisons to Big Star and Cheap Trick. The album's lyrics have been described as "ridiculous and melodramatic as they are witty". Release Mass Romantic was released originally on November 21, 2000 by Mint Records on vinyl and compact disc in Canada. It received an official United States release when it was released in a remastered form by Matador Records on October 7, 2003. "Letter from an Occupant", released on April 15, 2002, was the only single. The New Pornographers went on their first tour to promote the album. The tour presented problems, including throat damage, broken-down buses, and having to take expensive cab rides. A.C. Newman spoke positively about the tour, stating, "There's been fairly good crowds, but the shows haven't been that crazy. They've been getting better ... We're not really a party band. I hope people can party. We give them the music! Isn't that enough?" The tour sold out. Reception Mass Romantic was well received in the band's native Canada, where it won a Juno Award for Alternative Album