Joining us in the studio for this Indie Rock Hit Parade live session is a group that’s been at the foundation of IRHP since the beginning. New Jersey favorites Titus Andronicus have visited our building plenty of times over the years, most recently for a blistering “acoustic” set at 2018’s NonComm. Plenty about the band has changed in the last half-decade, and plenty has stayed the same. Still orbiting around Patrick Stickles’ lyrical yowl, the two albums released since A Productive Cough have re-established the band’s status as rollicking, anthemic punks. Titus Andronicus stopped by our studios late last year, the day after their set at the Front Bottoms’ 2022 Champagne Jam.
The session kicks off with three highlights from the band’s seventh LP, The Will to Live. “(I’m) Screwed” is a spiritual sequel to 2015’s “Dimed Out,” with rapid-fire lyrics wrapped around a shout-along refrain. Just as they do on the album, “Give Me Grief” and “Baby Crazy” barrel right into one another; the former also features a lead vocal turn from bassist R.J. Gordon. Finally, the band dips into their “bag of classics” for “Tumult Around the World,” the closing track off 2019’s Bob Mould-produced An Obelisk.
Watch Titus Andronicus’ full Indie Rock Hit Parade session below, and check out John Vettese’s photos from the studio. XPN welcome Titus Andronicus back to Philly for a show at Underground Arts on April 6th.