After going a bit mild on last year’s ballad-heavy A Productive Cough, the Titus Andronicus pendulum seems to have swung back in the other direction. Because on An Obelisk — their sixth album out in June via Merge Records — Titus Andronicus are fixin’ to go a bit WILD, baby! Hey Siri, play “The Boys are Back in Town.”
Shit. Well anyway, for the An Obelisk iteration of Titus Andronicus, the band was staffed by Liam Betson, R.J. Gordon, Chris Wilson, and, of course, Patrick Stickles. Trimmed down to a lean four-piece, and without the assistance of any outside musicians (save for some backing vocals) or studio bells and whistles, the band set out to capture the energy of their live shows. Now, this may make the album sound like it’s “back to basics,” or “a return to their roots.” Do NOT refer to it as such. As the very wordy press release announcing this album’s existence explains, “This is not a return to the band’s roots — this is an excavation of the dirt beneath those roots which will leave no fingernail unsoiled for the band or its audience.”
An Obelisk also marks a first in the Titus Andronicus catalog, as it is their first album not recorded with Kevin McMahon at Marcata Recording in Upstate New York. Instead, the perennial east coast outfit traveled out Midwest to record at Steve Albini’s Chicago studio, under the producing tutelage of the one-and-only Bob Mould.
Hear what a cross-generational punk team up between Titus Andronicus and Bob Mould sounds like by listening to “(I Blame) Society” off of An Obelisk down below. While you’re there, you can also check out the album’s artwork and full-tracklisting. An Obelisk is out June 21 via Merge Records and can be pre-ordered here.
An Obelisk obelisting:
01. Just Like Ringing a Bell
02. Troubleman Unlimited
03. (I Blame) Society
04. My Body and Me
05. Hey Ma
06. Beneath the Boot
07. On the Street
08. Within the Gravitron
09. The Lion Inside
10. Tumult Around the World
More about: Titus Andronicus
