We Are the Romans is the second and final studio album

Studio album

A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...

 by the American band Botch

Botch (band)

Botch was a four-piece mathcore band from Tacoma, Washington, United States, that formed in 1993 and disbanded in 2002.-History:The band released two full-length albums and a handful of smaller releases including several singles and an EP. Its members went on an indefinite hiatus to form Roy,...

. It was originally released in November 1999 through Hydra Head Records

Hydra Head Records

Hydra Head Records is an independent record label which specializes in heavy metal music, founded in New Mexico by Aaron Turner in 1993...

, and a remastered two disc edition was later released on September 11, 2007. A Hydra Head repressing of the vinyl will see release on October 25, 2011. The repress sold out on pre-order in under 20 minutes.

"C. Thomas Howell as the 'Soul Man'" has been described by the band as satirizing Racetraitor

Racetraitor

Racetraitor was an American political straight edge hardcore punk band from Chicago, Illinois.The band was known for calling audience members "crackers" and for espousing radical beliefs influenced by black nationalism, third worldism and other anti-colonial ideologies...

 and "other bands with these very lofty political ideals that seemed like more a marketing tool for the genre of political hardcore rather than a sincere agenda" (Brian Cook). Bassist Brian Cook, who determined many of the song titles, credits J. G. Ballard

J. G. Ballard

James Graham Ballard was an English novelist, short story writer, and prominent member of the New Wave movement in science fiction...

's book The Atrocity Exhibition

The Atrocity Exhibition

The Atrocity Exhibition is an experimental collection of "condensed novels" by British writer J. G. Ballard.Originally published in 1970 by Jonathan Cape. A revised large format paperback edition, with annotations by the author and illustrations by Phoebe Gloeckner, was issued by RE/Search in 1990...

as inspiring themes of "the human body as a landscape, and the way that culture and environment sort of dictates the human body and vice versa."

Track listing

All songs written and arranged by Botch.

1. "To Our Friends in the Great White North" – 5:10
2. "Mondrian Was a Liar" – 2:41
3. "Transitions from Persona to Object" – 6:04
4. "Swimming the Channel Vs. Driving the Chunnel" – 4:30
5. "C. Thomas Howell as the 'Soul Man'" – 4:44
6. "Saint Matthew Returns to the Womb" – 3:04
7. "Frequency Ass Bandit" – 4:26
8. "I Wanna Be a Sex Symbol on My Own Terms" – 3:35
9. "Man the Ramparts" – 10:50
10. Untitled hidden track
    Hidden track
    In the field of recorded music, a hidden track is a piece of music that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, vinyl record or other recorded medium in such a way as to avoid detection by the casual listener...
    
     – 7:27

Remaster bonus disc

No.	Song title (working titles in italics)	Notes	Time
1.	"To Our Friends in the Great White North" (demo) "Canada Song" or "Tasting Like a Hot Lunch in Amsterdam"	We Are the Romans demos Recorded live on Digital Audio Tape Digital Audio Tape Digital Audio Tape is a signal recording and playback medium developed by Sony and introduced in 1987. In appearance it is similar to a compact audio cassette, using 4 mm magnetic tape enclosed in a protective shell, but is roughly half the size at 73 mm × 54 mm × 10.5 mm. As... by Matt Bayles at Studio Litho May 31, 1999	5:17
2.	"I Wanna Be a Sex Symbol on My Own Terms" (demo) "Latin Song"		3:41
3.	"Transitions from Persona to Object" (demo) "Circus Song" or "Saturn Aligned with Mars"		6:34
4.	"Mondrian Was a Liar" (demo) "Bam Bam and Other Assorted Onamonapeia"		3:02
5.	"Saint Matthew Returns to the Womb" (demo) "F.I.M.D (Top Secret! Don't Ask!)"		3:21
6.	"C. Thomas Howell as the 'Soul Man'" (demo) "C. Thomas Howell as the 'Soul Man'"		4:25
7.	"Man the Ramparts" (demo) "Man the Ramparts for There Are Fair Maidens Aplenty"		6:33
8.	"Saint Matthew Returns To The Womb" (live)	Live in Seattle April 21, 2001 at Graceland	4:20
9.	"Vietmam" (live)		3:13
10.	"Transitions from Persona to Object" (live)	Live in France November 11, 1999	6:01
11.	"Hutton's Great Heat Engine" (live)		6:19

Reception

Personnel

Band members

• Brian Cook – bass guitar
  Bass guitar
  The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
  
  , backing vocals
• Dave Knudson – guitar
  Guitar
  The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
  
  
• Tim Latona – drums
  Drum kit
  A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
  
  
• Dave Verellen
  Dave Verellen
  Dave Verellen grew up in Tacoma, Washington and was the vocalist for the mathcore band Botch. He has since gone on to play drums for the folk-country band Roy with his brother Ben Verellen . In 2008 he formed a band Narrows with members of Some Girls and These Arms Are Snakes.-References:...
  
   – vocals
  Singing
  Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
  
  

Other personnel

• Matt Bayles
  Matt Bayles
  -Information:Bayles is known for his work with bands such as Isis, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Botch, Mastodon, The Fall of Troy, Minus The Bear, Burnt by the Sun and Norma Jean....
  
  – production, engineering and mixing
• Ed Brooks – mastering
• Carrie Whitney – photography
• Dave Knudson - art direction, design