Album Review: Titus Andronicus- The Most Lamentable Tragedy

Titus Andronicus

The Most Lamentable Tragedy

*** out of *****

If there are two words that strike fear into many fans of popular music when they are combined "rock-oprea" could very well be at the top of the list. One band on the current scene, and a song writer in particular who could pull it off would be Patrick Stickles of Titus Andronicus. The Most Lamentable Tragedy tries to do just that, but in the end, scattered results keep it from the heights it is shooting for.

Let me take a step back here and give some personal background. The site focuses on full albums and we still only listen to music this way. No shuffle, no nitpicking a track here or there and we love when artists take these leaps. Being a fan of this band gave us very high hopes for this disk, so this isn't a matter of form, it is more a matter of execution.

TMLT is huge, angsty, hymn filled and sprawling all over the place, one listen will not do much good, hell it takes a few just to dig into the themes. Beginning and ending with the same droning organ bookends the effort but "No Future Part IV: No Future Triumphant" is the first proper tune.

The song goes after an upbeat punk kick in the teeth setting the stage for whats to come, however for a man with so much to say the mushed vocal production is off putting and this unfortunately is a constant on the album. The DIY sounding production fits the Husker Du Zen Arcade link but pushes away many listeners who would benefit for Stickles "fictional" workings here dealing with depression/anxiety to be more lyrically accessible.

Sure, you can argue there is an added "punkness" to the sound and buried vocals, but punk bands make 22 minute full length albums, Titus covers that with two tracks on TMLT. If you are striving for something more, something higher (which they clearly are) a handbook or annotated lyric sheets from genuis.com shouldn't be needed to parse the couplets.

For more on the individual songs (which really just sink into the overall aesthetic) "Lonely Boy" stands out. The vocals and lyrics scream to be isolated/left alone but the backing track with huge piano runs, a swaggering rhythm and a motoring air of confidence (more than on any other song here), plays up the critical duality felt throughout the disk.

"Lost My Mind" easily recalls a Jersey hero of Stickles, Bruce Springsteen, as does "Fatal Flaw" adding a classic rock twist to the punk. The segues of "Look Alive", "The Magic Morning" and "Lookalike" feel forced and clunky while "Dimed Out" oppositely blasts with slamming hardcore and slashes excellently.

The Pogues get a punch in the chest as the band twists things slightly with the lyrics to fit the albums vision a bit, while TA's artiness gets the best of them when the excellent guitar work on "I'm Going Insane" slams into the jarring feedback of "Into The Void" off-putting and again crushes the vocals. Those guitars do sound firm though and when solos are given air, such as on "Stranded", the six strings shine.    

After listening and living with TMLT it certainly feels more like an album Stickles had to make more then one we need to hear. It would be a fitting closing chapter on Titus Andronicus as a project if he chooses, or they (he really) could keep soldiering on as punk rock purists either way we will still be listening, because he will always be worth checking out.
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Catching up on some releases this week that are from earlier in 2015 of artists we like. All that said, support the band, buy the album and peep some video below:

Album Review: Titus Andronicus- Local Business

Titus Andronicus

Local Business

*** out of *****

Coming out of the gate the verbose New Jersey Pub/Punk/Rock band sounds exhilarating, as if they are still flying high off of 2010's fantastic release The Monitor, unfortunately the band can't keep up the energy or goodwill throughout the 10 tracks of Local Business.

The pluses on this disk smack you in the face from the first notes. The new lineup (Guitarist Amy Klein and bassist Ian Graetzer have left the band) explodes with a 3 song segueing suite of pitch perfect power punk influenced by your local watering holes dead dreams and cheap drinks.   

The trio of "Ecce Homo", "Still Life with Hot Deuce and Silver Platter" and "Upon Viewing Oregon’s Landscape with the Flood of Detritus" are close to perfect, screaming about the insanity that is life over crashes (pyhsical and mental) and verbose offerings from main Andronici Patrick Stickles.

"Ecce Homo" (the title alone makes us love this band, Pontius Pilot anyone?) attacks the randomness and insanity that is day to day existence while "Still Life..." flashes transformative piano runs and strutting riffs.  "Upon Viewing..." is a jangling 50's car crash anthem injected with punk energy that updates it to modern times closing out the triumphant opening trio.

After the brief instrumental surf rock of the palette cleansing "Food Fight" the B side to this album begins to show some flaws. "Eating Disorder" is a rocking 3 minute tune that is stretched out well beyond its breaking point finishing at over 8 minutes.  The metallic breakdown midway through and the repeated shouting simply doesn't add anything and after the fantastic album intro the disk begins to stall.

The single "In A Big City" tries to kick start things with massive riffs and call-to-arms beating drums before a climatic chorus. A jumbled effort that still feels honest and alive in it's finale, and what seems crucial at this point, is brief.  "In A Small Body" however is even more disjointed and unravels due to overindulgence, a problem that effects the final three songs here.  There is certainly a good simple folk song in there somewhere but it seems like Patrick and company just can't get out of their own way to end the disk. 

"(I Am The) Electric Man" is laughable and "Tried to Quit Smoking" is the final example of taking things just too far and becoming increasingly indulgent.  On the bands past releases there has been a sense of wanting to start the album over and relive it all after the disk ends; this is not the case with Local Business.  Had the the first four songs (and possibly the first 3 minutes of "Eating Disorder") been released by themselves, you would have a perfect EP; as it is the full length leaves me wanting.  The band still is more intriguing and engaging then the majority of groups today but some editorial reigning in is needed next outing.
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That last line could prove difficult...Titus Andronicus is at their best when Patrick goes off and takes the audience and band with him.  Cascading wordy lines with riffs galore for the listener to be bombarded with...toning that down doesn't seem to work, but the 8 and nine minute musical wanderings here are really disappointing once the vocab stops. 

A mix bag of an album; half great, half I probably won't go back to, from a band that RtBE loves (we should have ranked The Monitor even higher in retrospect we would probably rank it 3rd from 2010) and will always check out.  Buy the album here, Catch the band live here, and peep a sample below:
"In A Big City"
           
"Still Life with Hot Deuce on  Silver Platter" Live in the Local Business Series:

Titus Andronicus Offer Free MixTape

With the NJ based punk band Titus Andronicus huge rock opera The Most Lamentable Tragedy a few weeks away the band has graciously offered a free mixtape for fans to download or stream below:

Maybe they took the title from Lil Wayne, but the music is Titus in it's fullest with live cuts, demos, rehearsals and outtakes from the upcoming TMLT. The first track and last track are also long noiserock instrumentals that build and drone if that is your kind of thing, it certainly is ours. (if not feel free to skip it for more commonly formed punk tunes). 

We have enjoyed the band greatly in the past, and did not rank their fantastic album The Monitor high enough in our year end review of 2010. The band and especially Patrick Stickles has a lot to say, all the time, but especially when it comes to this album. In fact Patrick, already released the lyrics and all their references himself on Genius so fans can have a guide to TMLT. 

We are looking forward to this one and hope to catch the band live when they come back to town in October. Here is a video to the banging "Dimed Out", of course complete with official lyrics, from their upcoming TMLT.  

Glide Review - The Pogues and Titus Andronicus Live 3/15/11

Hey all, got a new review up on Glide.

Read it right c'here!

It is of The Pogues and Titus Andronicus Live at Terminal 5 in NYC on 3/15/11

That picture to the left was taken from Brooklyn Vegan's pictures from the St. Patricks Day show the bands played, and I heard from my friend Paul that Shane was in much better shape for that show, perhaps he was saving his energy for the Patty's when we saw him because he was in rough shape on the 15th.  After seeing The Pogues a couple of times now, I am pretty good with them, but will probably get the urge to go next March when they are in town.

It was my first time catching Titus live and I will certainly go back for more, they were engaging energetic and diverse.  I loved their newest album and will keep an eye out for their next headlining set so I can see some more from the group.

I have some pics and videos from the night that I will get up when I have some time to load them.

Album Review: Titus Andronicus - A Productive Cough

Hey all, got a new review up @glidemag which you can read Right C'here!!!

It is of Titus Andronicus newest release, A Productive Cough.

This is a different outing from the group, which is basically Patrick Stickles and friends at this point. Instead of feedback he goes for layers of instrumentation and singing. The album might not be for everyone but we enjoy his style, especially when experimenting, even if not all the songs succeed.

We love "Above The Bodega (Local Business)", it is one of our favorite tracks of the year so far. Support the band,  read the review, buy the album and peep some video (and a documentary on the album) below:

Titus Andronicus Celebrate The Monitor with Vinyl and Tour

2020 was the ten year anniversary of one of RtBE's favorite records of the last decade, Titus Andronicus' The Monitor. 

To commemorate the event there will be a vinyl double album release and a tour this November focusing on the record. 

Back when we wrote about our top 50 albums of the last decade, The Monitor placed super high as we loved the over the top rambles, the connection of Civil War to 2010 New Jersey (things have only gotten worse) the anthemic scream-a-longs and Patrick Stickles whole musical style on this record. 

Stickles also said something very interesting regarding the anniversary's delay:

"As the 10th anniversary came and went, I considered scrapping the whole thing, but my audience has helped me so much to endure during this difficult time, and knowing how much they themselves have had to endure, I couldn't ignore or deny that they deserve a little treat. After so many years of doing whatever I want, for once, I'm going to give the people what they want."

That is great, and very honest. RtBE can't wait to own the vinyl and catch the band live. To get pumped here is a tune from the record:

Year in Review 2010 - Top 10 Albums - Part 2 (10-6)

Here is part 2 of RTBE's Year in Review for 2010, today we are dealing with the first half of our top 10 list Albums 10-6.

In the instance that I have reviewed the album either on the site or somewhere else I will link to that review and I will also provide a link to Amazon so you can pick it up with the quickness.  I worked with the Glide Team to give input on the their Top 20 so expect some overlap, but not a ton. Again the focus here is on full albums, not singles, but full releases you can slap on and listen to the full way through.

Here re albums 10-6 after the jump and it seems these are always the one's I slap around in different orders 100 times until I feel best about them...anyway, click that Read More link down there...to well, read more and find out.

Album Review: Titus Andronicus - An Obelisk

Hey all, got a new review up @glidemag which you can read Right C'here!!!

It is of Titus Andronicus newest release An Obelisk.

Every time Patrick Stickles band put out an album I am going to happily check it out. The last one was a switching of gears following the triple rock opera, this is more in line with Local Business. While none of these speak directly to me as say The Monitor did (and still does) they are all top notch pub/rock/punk offerings and I am personally happy he is still slugging it out. 

Support +@, buy the album and peep some video below:

Titus Andronicus, The Will To Live, Coming in September, New Single "(I'm) Screwed" Out Now

The New Jersey punk outfit Titus Andronicus has announced their 7th studio album, The Will to Live, which will be released in September. 

The first catchy single, "(I'm) Screwed" has a video and it is out now, check it out below. 

RtBE have thoroughly enjoyed TA in the past, even ranking The Monitor very highly on our list of Favorites from the last decade. 

We are looking forward to this one. Here is "(I'm) Screwed":

 

Album Review: Titus Andronicus - The Will To Live

Hey all, got a review up @glidemag which you can read Right C'here!

It is of Titus Andronicus' newest release The Will To Live. 

RtBE has always enjoyed checking out whatever Patrick and company are releasing or live when we can catch them. RtBE has reviewed all of their releases since The Monitor, which still remains our favorite and one of our favorite albums of the past decade. 

The Will To Live is already our second favorite though as the band just put the pedal down in their search for "Ultimate Rock".

Support the artists, buy the album, read the review and peep some video below:

Top 50 Albums of the 2010's: Numbers 10-1

Way back in 2009 we were lucky enough to help contribute to Glide Magazine's list of Best Albums of the 2000's. Hard to believe it has been ten years since we worked on that list, but it is that time again to look back at the previous decade and put together some arbitrary rankings. Since this site has been going strong the full decade we have a lot to pull from.

Here comes RtBE's picks for the top albums from the last decade, 2010-2019.

If we reviewed the album we will provide a link to that review in the title, a brief reflection on the record and a tune from it. A lot can change in ten years and a lot stays the same. Some albums were just right for their time and place and haven't aged particularly well and others were perhaps misunderstood or even prophetic as to where the world was headed.

Just our two cents, but this decade will not be looked back at fondly when it comes to remembering music in general. Things (for the most part) are being programmed and mushed together into mellow, white bread, digestible tunes with a hip hop foundation around pop hooks, synth vibes, a few strings and nothing the least bit exciting or offensive for the majority of music out there. In an era that should be considerably be ripe for protest, outrage, and individual expressionism, very little of actual substance has escaped to the masses.

Also from a practical standpoint, never before has the concept of "album" been so meaningless in our streaming/playlist curated society. While RtBE isn't completely old fashion, we still haven't bought into those ways of consuming music and the album is still our only way of listening to things, whether on vinyl or downloaded; no shuffling of singles here. This list focuses on full lengths that are played from beginning to end and deliver the goods.  

We will break this down over five parts, doing ten albums a day. There were a ton of good records released over the last ten years, much more than fifty, but these are our choices. We kept our personal musical releases off the list, but feel free to listen and critique those.

As a note, Glide Magazine, the main site we contribute to, changed it's rating system in the middle of the decade from 5 Stars to 10 stars, then removed it all together so if you see say #49 on our list with only 4 stars, consider it doubled to 8.

Like all of the lists RtBE have done, this is meant to start conversations, not end them. So let's kick it off...

Year in Review 2015- Top 10 Albums Part 1 (The Just Misses & Let Downs)

Another great year is finishing up for @RockBodElec and we wouldn't be a proper music site if we didn't end the year with a "Best Of" list, so RtBE Presents the Best of 2015 Top Ten Albums: The Just Misses & Let Downs:

In the instance that RtBE has reviewed the album either on the site or somewhere else we will link to that review and just give a quick summation, just click on the name and title and you can read it.  RtBE worked with the Glide Team to give input on the their Top 20 so expect some overlap. 

Again the focus here is on full albums, not singles, but full releases you can slap on and listen all the way through. We know these are a dying breed, but it still is the way we consume music, no shuffle or singles for us. Personally we released an acoustic based EP this year, but we will graciously remove ourselves from the rankings however, you can gave it a listen or download it for free.

Today we are going to focus on the "Just Misses" of our top 10 and unfortunately the "Let Downs" released this year. Obviously these are just our personal preferences, feel free to voice your opinion in the comments.  Expect installment 2 (#10-6) soon, but for now click on the jump:

Album Review - Sister City - Carbon Footprint

This review is part of the "Over Flow" Review Series. For various reasons these past reviews were not published anywhere else. I am tagging them as Overflow Reviews and may add some extra information after if needed but I will keep the ratings and reviews just as I originally wrote them. Enjoy:

 Sister City 

Carbon Footprint

** and 1/2 out of *****

Sister City are a duo (Adam Linder and Daniel Abzug on drums) from Rockville, Maryland, but that classification, 'duo' is completely misleading if you have never heard their first release, Carbon Footprint.  The first thing that belies that term is the production, the album is flushed out and produced (overproduced at times) so that it sounds as if there are 8 people playing and 6 people singing on a majority of the tunes.  Secondly, this is all about songwriter/lead singer/guitarist/bassist/producer/everything else (as per the liner notes) Adam Linder; when you title one of your own songs, on your first album no less, "Reinventing Adm Linder" you are squarely making yourself the focus.  There are tons of first person references and conflicting thoughts about history, religion and love...hell there are just a ton of lyrics. 

Waves of words wash over the listener and at times it feels like Mr. Linder is singing sentences because he simply can't get out of the way of his own thoughts.  There is rarely an instrumental break longer then 10 seconds without the lyrics dominating again, in an English Lit Major restlessness way.  Carbon Footprint may actual contain lyrical links connecting the whole album but sifting through these stanzas would take years.  Even though it's running time is just over 40 minutes it can wipe a listener out and feel much longer, not necessarily painful, just exhaustive.   

As the album progresses it seems to get tighter and more focused, the majority of Carbon Footprint musically contains a direct nod to the power/pop/punk of NoFX while the wordy rants can bring to mind Titus Andronicus as well.  When the focus is tempo changes and speed like on "Eff That" things come together nicely another highlight is the theatrical closer "How Much" which Linder seems to relish.  "IMPERATIVE" uses an acoustic march to build up to its finale, "Cartoon Movies" possesses a gypsy/Klezmer vibe and even quotes Moses while the already mentioned "Reinventing Adm Linder" has a smoother country feel that works.  The genres can seem all over the place, but it adds to the searching sense of the album; Linder may not have found his comfort zone yet, but the journey is all enveloping.       

In an age where lo-fi and minimalism seems to be the route most young artists are taking Sister City hitchhikes on the road (currently) less traveled and tries to blow out your speakers with layers of sounds and words.  The production deserves props as does the overloading of both sonics and verbiage ("Big and Small Words" literally crackles the speakers) and if you can withstand the initial onslaught you may find yourself going back in for more.    

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That pretty much covers it, just wanted to point you in the bands direction here and give you a chance to check out the tunes for yourself via their bandcamp or right below.  

Enjoy:

Year In Review 2022 - Favorite Albums Part 2 (#10-6)

Another year is finishing up and @RockBodElec wouldn't be a proper music site if we didn't end the year with a "Best Of" list, so RtBE presents 2022's Favorite Albums Part 2 (Numbers 10-6):

In the instance that RtBE has reviewed the album, either on this site or elsewhere, we will link to that review and just give a quick summation; click on the name/title and you can read our full opinion. RtBE worked with the Glide Team to give input on their Top 20 so you can expect some overlap if you already have seen that list.

Again the focus here is on full albums, not singles, but long playing releases you can slap on and listen all the way through. We know these are a dying breed, but it still is the way we consume music, no shuffle, Spotify or singles for us.

This begins our top ten and we will wrap it up tomorrow. You can find our list of Honorable Mentions and let downs here. 

Like all of our lists or 'best of' roundups, these are meant to start conversations, not end them...

Album Review: Call Me Lightning -When I Am Gone My Blood Will Be Free

Call Me Lightning

When I Am Gone My Blood It Will Be Free

***and1/2 out of *****

It's fitting that this indie/pop/punk 3 piece from Milwaukee, Wisconsin took their name from an early Who single as the group continues their naming inspired group's fiery sing-along-theatrical -songs energetically.     

The band sounds larger then the sum of their three parts on this disk with a thundering rhythm section marching behind the anthemic lyrics. The title track screams it's independence as the drums of Shane Hochstetler simply pound out the thunder.  The bass of  Kris Maedke-Russell dominates the opening "Called To The Throne" while front man Nathan Lilley screams out into the night on tracks like "Beyond The Beasts" and "Bronze Hell".

The groups keeps it high octane except for a minstrel sounding "The Fog" and there seems to be a loose theme around these songs that recalls sword and sorcery, but nothing gets to D&D based to distract from the tunes. 

Call Me Lightning's bring to mind a more guttural version of Titus Andronicus at their simplest, but the power is never diluted. The band is a catchy powerful as all hell trio that has hooks in the right places and succeeds on When I'm Gone My Blood It Will Be Free.      
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Solid group, as big Who fans here at RTBE we gotta give this band some love, even if the disk is a few years old.  Peep their facebook here, grab the album here and some tuneage below:
"Beyond The Beasts"

"Bronze Hell" Live

Title Track Live

Check out nycTaper's Fall/Winter Schedule

Time to check in again over at nycTaper and peep their Fall/Winter Schedule.

For those who don't know nycTaper is a great site for live music fans. They are fantastic fellas who do a hell of a job capturing the live music scene in this amazing city. Today we are focusing on their Fall/Winter lineup and a few of these shows have already been shared on the site.

We are looking forward to hearing their Titus Andronicus recordings, Teenage Fanclub and Earthless just to name a few. Feel free to check out their list and enjoy their sweet sounds. We will post some live videos from those bands we are looking forward to below:

Glide Review - The Hold Steady Live - 9/17/11 NYC and Show Download Link

Hey all,

Got a new review up on Glide.

Read it right C'here!!!!

It is of The Hold Steady's live show on 9/17/11 down at the Beekman Beer Garden/Beach Club from a few Fridays ago...

I am not going to pussyfoot around with this one, the full day and concert was one of my favorite days in a very long time.  I have been on a roll of good times, but this one raised the bar a bit.

As I mentioned the day started with Oysters and Guinness which is a perfect way to get into anything...

 My sister Meg came down to join me and some friends in the fun which was appreciated. The show opener of "Ask Her For Some Adderal" was exactly what I wanted to hear and got me jumping and singing along.

Well...for some of us...It is no secret I like this band in a weird way...normally I am drawn into the music first and all else follows, but Craig Finn has a way of digging into my brain and having me act like a Teeny Bopper...I identify all too well with a ton of what he sings about and his New York songs seem to have been my soundtrack for the last few years...

The music was top notch though as the band didn't stop all night and I had the chance to actually meet and talk with a few of them.  Craig seemed a bit jittery and nervous pre-show so I gave him his space, but chatted with drummer Bobby Drake.  He mentioned it was the old "hurry up to sit around and wait", the band was just ready to get it on....That they did...

Post Show I had the opportunity to chat with Finn about Minnesota, Baseball and Beer, turns out he is friends with the owner of the hotel we stayed at when we made a trip to the Twin Cities this summer to catch a game, Graves 601.  I also had the pleasure to talk at length with bassist Galen Polvika, mentioning that "Hot Soft Light" was one of the first songs I learned to cover on bass.
<iframe width="600" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/1mnbNULjNYM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>iframe>
It was an epic show, from a group of genuinely nice guys...one thing I didn't mention to them was that this was the third time I saw the band this year, I can see them every weekend and not get bored...they are that far up my alley...wait that sounds wrong.

I also had a chance to chat for a bit with Patrick Stickles from Titus Andronicus and I mentioned seeing his bands great set on the other side of the pier earlier this summer.  I also complemented his Civil War motif on the album, something that I think is a touch genius, even if his jeans were a tad too skinny...

Anyway the night ended with some tasty late night sushi at Blue Ribbon....Perfect way to end a perfect day of pure Boosh!.

Thanks for reading this long, as a beautiful bonus, the amazing people over at NYC Taper were on hand to record the show so you can experience the night or re-live the magic. 

The link is right here.

Thanks for the fantastic time Boys, Catch you @ the next NYC show.  

10 Years With Glide Magazine: A Look Back Part 5

Wow, @glidemag, has it really been 10 years since I first contributed to the website? That is hard to believe, time flies. In chatting with the sites fantastic editor, Shane Handler, about this series it turns out I have been the longest continual contributor to Glide, that's a fun feat. It continues to be a great ride but since everyone likes round numbers, I decided to take some time to look back at my favorite writings for the site.

For our final installment we want to focus on the piece we go back to the most and the one we were the most proud to work on, as we helped shape Glide's List of the Best Albums of The Decade.

Free Summer Shows in NYC

Well it is officially Summer here in the Big Apple, while most people love to escape town on the weekends we kinda love the empty streets and heat. One of the pluses of the hotter weather is the insane amount of Free Concerts in NYC.

I am not going to list all of them, you can find many sites like My Free Concert here or check out NYC Parks site for more. Oh My Rockness also does a hell of a job compiling all of these. You can check out House of Vans or ilovefreeconcerts for more.

There are literally shows around every corner it seems like, whether the sun is shining or setting during June July and August in New York there will be free tunes. We will highlight a few we hope to check out (starting with some this week), just click that read more.

Glide Review - 4 Knots Festival - The Black Angels etc.

 Hey all, got a new review up on Glide.

You can read it right C'here!!!!

It is of the Village Voice, 4 Knots Festival.

I didn't have no stinking Press Pass or VIP access, so this review comes straight from the people...

The people who were drinking $5 Miami Vice Cocktails that is!  Quite a deal in that neck of the nape.

Anyway the show was stellar, I attended with a few good friends and had a blast, we hung out late post show at the Beekman Beer Garden and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  The easy highlight for me was Titus Andronicus, but my friends Seamus and Kristen thought that The Black Angels were the bees knees.

Just proves there was lots of fun times and tunes to be consumed...until next year....Pic was from here



This Sums it up well: