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Magnet Magazine is throwing a birthday bash at The Troc with Guided By Voices, Surfer Blood, Titus Andronicus

Titus Andronicus | photo by Chris Durbin
Titus Andronicus | photo by Chris Durbin

Indie music magazine Magnet turns 21 this year and it is gearing up to celebrate in a big way.  The locally founded and run publication has invited indie rock veterans Guided By Voices to headline a birthday show at The Trocadero on May 22nd, supported by alt rockers Surfer Blood and Jersey punk rockers Titus Andronicus.  Tickets for the 21+ event will be available here.  Check out videos from the performers below.

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Tonight’s Concert Picks: Little Big League at Union Transfer, Marc Silver at Johnny Brenda’s, Hot Tuna at Keswick Theater, The Gallerist at The Fire

Little Big League

Philly indie rock outfit Little Big League will be opening for Titus Andronicus at Union Transfer, warming up for the release of their first LP, These Are Good People (out July 11th on Tiny Engines Records). Fun fact: Drummer Ian Dykstra used to play for Titus Andronicus a few years back! Find tickets and more information here, and check out their new song “Lindsey” below.

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Fun Cover of the Moment: Titus Andronicus’ Patrick Stickles doing Free Energy’s “Hey Tonight.”

PatrickWhen this popped up on Facebook earlier this afternoon, I wasn’t quite sure how seriously to take it. After all, when Titus Andronicus played the First Unitarian Church back in October, they kind of made fun of Philly party rockers Free Energy – did a shticky joke song called “I’ve Got A Date Tonight” that totally lampooned our dudes and their joyful Cheap Trick-isms. So was this – Titus frontman Patrick Stickles doing his take on “Hey Tonight” – going to be some smarmy, sneering Brooklynite cover of Free Energy? I don’t need that noise.

Turns out, whatever jokes they made in the fall, it was all in friendly jest, since Stickles and the boys are buds, and he briefly filled in on guitar for them in spring of 2011, after founding guitarist Geoff Bucknum left the band and before current guitarist Sheridan Fox joined. (For visual evidence, Key contributor Joe Del Tufo got this photo of Stickles and Free Energy singer Paul Sprangers when the band played Arden Gild Hall in May of 2011.)

So, the cover – it’s fun. It sounds like Stickles recorded it in his backyard with garage band drum presets and the old guitar you see in that photo, but he keeps the celebratory vibe. Listen to the re-done “Hey Tonight” below, and take our recent free at noon with Free Energy for a spin here (via the WXPN media player). Continue reading →

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Slam-dancing in the basement with Titus Andronicus (photos, recap, setlist)

Jersey punks Titus Andronicus like to think big: sweeping string sections, heady lyrical references, seven-minute songs. And they pull it off, too – see The Monitor, or this year’s excellent Local Business. But they connect the strongest when they’re out there in the trenches, playing the basements of the world with a sea of fans screaming along to every song. Such was the case last night in the basement of the First Unitarian Church, where the band slammed its way across an hour and 45 minute set (again, not thinking small). Continue reading →

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Tonight’s Concert Picks: Titus Andronicus at First Unitarian Church, Rufus Wainwright at The Pullo Center, Kopecky Family Band at MilkBoy Philly, The Lawsuits at PhilaMOCA’s Tuesday Tune-Out, Des Ark at Goldilocks Gallery

Photo by Kyle Dean Reinford
New Jersey punk band Titus Andronicus make a stop in Philly tonight for a show at the First Unitarian Church that coincides with the release of their third studio album Local Business.  Led by Patrick Stickles, Titus Andronicus’ live shows are a force to be reckoned with and this one will be no exception, with support coming from hardcore punk outfit Ceremony and local post-punk band Psychic Teens.  Tickets to the all-ages show are $15 here; doors open at 8:00 p.m with music beginning at 8:30 p.m.  Below, watch a live-session video of Titus Andronicus’ “In a Big City” off of the new record.  Read Stickles thoughts on food fights, punk rock and Local Business in an interview with The Key here.

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Interview: Titus Andronicus’ Patrick Stickles on food fights and punk rock freedom (playing the First Unitarian Church tomorrow)

Fans of New Jersey natives Titus Andronicus have gone so far as to credit the band with keeping punk alive.

Loud guitars, raucous choruses and heady, large-as-life lyrical concepts have earned it acclaim once thought unbecoming of the underground nature of punk music. Pitchfork was one of the first to publish a positive review of the band’s 2008 debut, The Airing of Grievances. Rolling Stone named them one of the best new bands of 2010 following the release of their sophomore Civil War concept album, The Monitor.

Naturally, the hype has been building for the release Titus Andronicus’ third album, Local Business, out today on XL Recordings. It is one of the band’s most stripped-down and sprawling, as well as an autobiographical effort from frontman Patrick Stickles, who chose to relay personal struggles within the album’s framework.

Despite the wealth of responsibility that seemingly rests on these punk purveyors’ shoulders, Stickles said there is only one group the band answers to for a reaction to the new record. Continue reading →

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Listen to a new Titus Andronicus Track (playing First Unitarian Church 10/23)

Titus Andronicus, who just released the first single from their upcoming record Local Business two weeks ago, have followed it up with “Still Life with Hot Deuce and Silver Platter.” Local Business will be available October 22nd. Catch Titus Andronicus and Ceremony at First Unitarian Church on October 23rd; details here. Watch the new lyrics video for “Still Life” below.

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Download a new Ceremony track, “Everything Burns” (playing First Unitarian Church 10/23)

Hardcore punk band Ceremony are currently offering a free download of their new song, “Everything Burns,” which they have been performing at recent shows. “Everything Burns” captures the group’s signature violent energy. Ceremony also just announced plans to tour with Titus Andronicus, and the two bands will be performing at the First Unitarian Church on October 23rd; ticket information for the show can be found here. Download “Everything Burns” below.

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Listen to “In A Big City,” the awesome new single from Titus Andronicus (playing the First Unitarian on 10/23)

Titus Andronicus | Photo by John Vettese

Don’t make those year-end lists yet, boys and girls. When rabble-rousing Jersey rockers Titus Andronicus releases its third long-player, Local Business, via XL Records on October 22, it’s going to change everything. The nine-song set delivers on the raw energy the band exhibits in concert, sounding at once folksy and anthemic. The band just announced a Philadelphia date at the First Unitarian Church the day after the album is released; tickets and more information on the October 23 show are available here. Below, listen to “In A Big City,” the first single from Local Business.

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Photo Gallery: SXSW standouts

If you haven’t gathered from our volume of posts about it these past several days, there is no shortage of live music at Austin’s annual South by Southwest conference. Here is a gallery of five performances that stood out to me as I darted back and forth across town: the wild southern-fried rock of Pond (who plays Johnny Brenda’s tonight); quick snaps of Titus Andronicus holding their own in a feisty set just before The Jesus and Mary Chain took the stage; an insane, irreverent performance by Barcelona’s Za! wherein two dudes with various instruments had a bonkers, Trout Mask Replica-inspired freakout; a solid afternoon showing by Brookyn’s White Rabbits; and a breezy evening performance by Creed Bratton, founding member of The Grass Roots, who you might also know as that guy from NBC’s The Office.

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