Metropole was recorded at Chicago's Atlas Studios with co-producer Matt Allison who has also worked with Chicago-punk-scene veterans Alkaline Trio. The follow-up to their 2009 Fat Wreck Chords EP Buttsweat and Tears, the new venture takes the band's gritty punk rock and fiery spirit, to reveal a new passion of the band for storytelling-through-songwriting. Take the bravely personal lyrics of "You Are Here" where McCaughan ironically sings "Days just keep rolling on / They won’t miss me when I’m gone / I’m the chorus to that lonely street / Just footsteps fading to a dying beat". But it is clear that after a long hiatus, dedicated fans have missed The Lawrence Arms and are ready for the band's most dynamic album to date.

The multi-year break between albums ultimately went a long way in refining the band’s vision and sound. “Because of the way we exist as a band, it was important for us to wait until we knew we had something to say that was sharp and pointed and dynamic and incisive,” says Kelly. “And if we didn’t have that, then we’d just rather not make a record, ‘cause fuck it.”