Rally around the flag.
We here at Music For Robots are pretty big fans of Titus Andronicus, if only for the crazy amount of enthusiasm with which they attack everything.
Titus Andronicus - A More Perfect Union.
Their new record The Monitor has a Civil War theme, but it's rooted in everyday life - which is a funny comparison, but one that makes perfect sense in context. "A More Perfect Union" is the first track from this album, and it's a great introduction. This album is as epic as they come, but it somehow feels intimate, too. I don't know how they pulled that off, but I'm glad they did. I've always liked this band's balance of energy and pop sense, and that balance is intact here too.
The Monitor features members of the Hold Steady and Wye Oak, and it was mastered by Greg Calbi - who, the band's press release notes, is the only person to have worked on both Fucked Up's Common Life and Meat Loaf's Bat Out Of Hell II. The album is due out next Tuesday on XL. It's highly recommended.