A Night on the Town by The Dear Hunter is a song that was released as part of the album Act IV: Rebirth in Reprise on September 04, 2015. The album itself was part four of a six part story. To know the meaning of the song one must look at the story of the album. It takes place after the events of the previous album: Act III: Life and Death, where the protagonist assumes the identity of his half brother, who died in the First World War.
In this song the protagonist weighs the decision he made to take his half brother’s identity. He considers revealing the truth but chooses not to because he believes himself to be too deep in the lie. He even seems to come to the conclusion that stealing his brother’s identity was not only good, but he would do it again. I believe this is represented in the lines: “And more alarming, I would have done the very same, Would have stole more than your name,”.
The song focuses on our protagonist’s struggle with truth and falsehoods. He is filled with guilt for taking the identity of his half brother, but seems to lack remorse. He is not only willing to continue the ruse but seems that he would do it again if given the chance. It acts as the perfect insight into the protagonist’s mind as the story continues.