Titus Andronicus
A Productive Cough

Bob Dylan built an entire discography on the many "miss solitude," so much so that if I had to choose a single adjective to describe him, I’d say "rancorous." Something that, instead of constituting a limitation, signifies his greatness, because after all, there's no sentiment that better explains human nature than resentment. So turning the content of such an important song as "Like A Rolling Stone" back on oneself is perhaps the most significant calling card to present the new Titus Andronicus album. A choice explained by Patrick Stickles in an interesting "chat" with Ryan H. Walsh (journalist and artist, among other things frontman of Hallelujah the Hills and husband of Marissa Nadler) as symbolic of the band's change in sound (after all, that was also the symbolic song of Bob Dylan's change in sound and style) and at the same time a distinctly punk break like, "No Bob, you’re not fooling me, I, all of us, are damned fucking loose cannons and we all damn well know how it feels when everything goes to hell."

With "A Productive Cough" (Merge), Patrick Stickles definitely raises the quality level of Titus Andronicus' production (the lineup at the moment includes Liam Betson, R.J. Gordon, and Chris Wilson) with songs centered on the importance of his writing and that, far from the definition of "indie," are all accompanied by a myriad of musicians, among whom vocalist Megg Farrell stands out, delivering a fantastic performance in the ballad "Crass Tattoo," just one of the beautiful songs built on the insistent sound of the piano (the single "Number One (In New York)," "Mass Transit Madness (Goin' Loco')") typically oscillating as in the Bob Dylan tradition, a style also repeated in the more electric pieces like "Real Talk," "Above the Bodega (Local Business)," and the aforementioned "(I'm) Like a Rolling Stone."

Even accidentally approaching Dylan is undoubtedly an attempt that could literally shatter the good intentions of a bunch of musicians, but here Titus Andronicus (actually increasingly a creation of Patrick Stickles alone) prove up to the task, and by also capturing a certain freshness of Jeff Mangum and Neutral Milk Hotel, they create a convincing rock music album that highlights notable songwriting abilities and a taste for arrangements, and if it stands the test of time, it could open an interesting new page for the history of this group and American music.