The Monitor- Titus Andronicus

A revival of all that is beautiful about punk rock. If Bright Eyes exists to allow Connor Oberst to lay out his strongest emotions in every track, then Titus exists for the pure joy of rocking out. Speaking of Connor Oberst, Titus front-man, Patrick Stickles, sounds like a much angrier version of the acclaimed vocalist. Many of the tracks on this CD lean towards rousing choruses while violins and sweeping guitar riffs dance in the background. The lyrics take on a much darker side if you actually take a moment to listen. The more apocalyptic sound of the words are mirrored by the earlier excerpts from some of Lincoln's most famous speeches. The album itself is named after the first US ironclad, and the CD focuses on a very loose civil war theme, thus the Lincoln allusions.

Track List:

1. A More Perfect Union: Possibly my favorite track on the album. It starts off with a very morose speech by Lincoln followed by a strong drumbeat while the guitar builds up in the background. Stickles dives right into his lyrics, describing the loneliness that he sees in the world around him. This is the start of a series of round-robins between singing and free floating guitar solos which give more life to the song. Eventually, all of this feeds into a rousing chorus by Stickles and the drummer, Eric Harms, that sounds almost Arcade Fire-like. Despite the gloominess of the lyrics, you can't help but smile because of the rousing sound of the Stickles, Harms, and three separate guitars wailing in unison. A guitar solo plays the song out and another Lincoln speech fills out the final 30 seconds.

2. Titus Andronicus Forever- Possibly the happiest song on the whole album. "The Enemy is everywhere" states Stickles. He never quite describes who this "enemy" is but that's ok. Despite its lack of substance lyric-wise, the band has fun rocking out for 2 minutes of bliss. Once again, part of a Lincoln speech leads the song towards its close.

3. No Future Part Three: Escape From No Future- This track starts on a slow, mournful note but picks up with a guttural war cry from Stickles. A strong guitar riff backs up the vocals and it leads the song out of the slow melancholy feeling of the first 30 seconds of the song. Stickles really digs deep into himself on this track. He spends the whole time describing the part of him that he lost, this just so happens to be the one thing that makes him unique. His final conclusion is that he will "always be a loser." Dammit, if losers can play like this, then maybe there is some hope for the future of punk rock.

4. Richard II- This track is closer to a revolutionary yelling his protest against a despotic regime than anything else. A slow tidal wave led by the guitar entente leads this song to its energetic take-off at 1:08. "To whatever extent you hate yourself, it isn't enough" screams Stickles. Someone must have pissed the guy off, because he is not letting go of whatever was done to him. What he can't say for himself, he lets the guitars scream out allowing for Richard II to come to a rousing close with a long fadeout.

5. A Pot In Which To Piss- Fittingly this track starts with a quote from Jefferson Davis instead of Lincoln. Likewise, this spells the end of the high intensity of the first 4 tracks. Stickles slows his lyrics down, instead of trying to cram in the last word, he takes a nod from Bon Iver and lets his voice follow the drum beat through each line before trailing off. About 1/3 of the way through, the song picks up and so do the lyrics. Stickles throws out any possibility of surrender saying that, "There's a white flag in my pocket, never to be unfurled." While all this goes on, the piano kicks in, and soon the it joins the guitar in leading the song to its close.

6. Four Score And Seven- By far the most depressing song on the album. The lyrics reflect Stickles loss of hope for humanity and he sings about his loneliness while a Dylan-esque harmonica tune fills the gaps. The now familiar formula of a slow beginning followed by an abrupt pickup jumps in. Instead of a piano, trumpets and tambourines take the lead on this one.

7. Theme From 'Cheers'- The violin takes the lead while a very drunken sounding Stickles belts out his various reasons for getting into his current state. He has decided to drink away all of his problems and live his life without ever having to deal with whats in front of him. The guitar kicks in and the violin follow the lyrics as they weave their way to the climax. The guitar takes over the song and plays an energetic riff which ends the track.

8. To Old Friends And New- The slowest song on the album, and surprisingly one of the strongest. The piano starts off leading the song until Stickles and violinist, Cassie Ramone, start a lyrical back and forth resulting in a duet. The background and drums start in, but stay muted in the background letting the two singers take the spotlight. Eventually the whole band puts down their instruments and join in a finale that evokes Stickles vision of a better future, but only if people actually learn to accept each other.

9. ... And Ever- By far the liveliest song on the album. The CD comes back full circle repeating the words of track 2. This time, the piano and saxophone play a game of pass the baton resulting in an entire sax solo. The final speech by Lincoln is fairly ironic considering the words to the song. "We are not enemies, but friends," the reader states.

10. The Battle of Hampton Roads- This winding epic hits every single high point of all of the songs on the record and towards the end it has a ridiculous bagpipe solo. What more is there to say?