The Monitor (album)
 |
This article uses bare URLs for citations. Please consider adding full citations so that the article remains verifiable. Several templates and the Reflinks tool are available to assist in formatting. (Reflinks documentation) (August 2011) |
| The Monitor | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
||||
| Studio album by Titus Andronicus | ||||
| Released | March 9, 2010 | |||
| Recorded | August 2009 | |||
| Genre | Punk rock Lo-fi |
|||
| Length | 65:24 | |||
| Label | XL Recordings | |||
| Producer | Kevin McMahon | |||
| Titus Andronicus chronology | ||||
|
||||
The Monitor is the second studio album by New Jersey punk rock band Titus Andronicus, released on March 9, 2010, through XL Recordings. It is a concept album loosely based on themes relating to the American Civil War.[1]
The album title is a reference to the USS Monitor, the first ironclad warship commissioned by the United States Navy, and the closing track, "The Battle of Hampton Roads", refers to the battle between the Monitor and the CSS Virginia, which took place on March 8–9, 1862; according to the band, "Releasing this record is our way of celebrating the 148th anniversary of this historic event."[2] There are numerous references to early Billy Bragg songs such as some lyrics in "A More Perfect Union" and the song "Richard II". "A More Perfect Union" also includes references to the band's New Jersey roots as well as riffs on the lyrics of Bruce Springsteen, another New Jersey native. The album features guest appearances by members of Ponytail, Wye Oak, Hallelujah The Hills, Spider Bags, Vivian Girls and The Hold Steady. This album currently[when?] has a Metacritic score of 82 out of 100, signaling universal acclaim. Pitchfork Media included the album in their list of top albums of 2010, at #10[3] while Spectrum Culture gave the record its #1 position.[4]
"The Monitor" was named Exclaim!'s No. 20 Pop & Rock Album of 2010.[5]
[edit] Track listing
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 82/100[6] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [7] |
| Drowned in Sound |   [8] |
| Pitchfork | (8.7/10)[9] |
| Robert Christgau | (A-)[10] |
| No Ripcord | [11] |
| BBC Music | (very favorable)[12] |
| Consequence of Sound | [13] |
| Sputnikmusic |  [14] |
| A.V. Club | (B+)[15] |
- "A More Perfect Union" - 7:09
- "Titus Andronicus Forever" - 1:55
- "No Future Part Three: Escape From No Future" - 5:16
- "Richard II" - 5:06
- "A Pot in Which to Piss" - 8:53
- "Four Score and Seven" - 8:38
- "Theme From 'Cheers'" - 5:01
- "To Old Friends and New" - 7:00
- "…And Ever" - 2:24
- "The Battle of Hampton Roads" - 14:02
[edit] References
- ^ Tom Breihan (14 December 2009). "Titus Andronicus Reveal Civil War-Themed Second Album". Pitchfork Media. http://pitchfork.com/news/37386-titus-andronicus-reveal-civil-war-themed-second-album. Retrieved 19 December 2009.
- ^ Patrick Stickles; Titus Andronicus (14 December 2009). "Our new record". Titus Andronicus, Myspace. http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=17364466&blogId=522230871. Retrieved 19 December 2009.
- ^ Pitchfork top 50 albums of 2010, page 5
- ^ Spectrum Culture Best Albums of 2010
- ^ "Pop & Rock Year in Review". Exclaim!. http://exclaim.ca/Features/YearInReview/pop_rock_year_in_review_2010/Page/20.
- ^ http://apps.metacritic.com/music/artists/titusandronicus/monitor
- ^ http://www.allmusic.com/album/r1718027
- ^ http://drownedinsound.com/releases/15154/reviews/4139243
- ^ http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/14010-the-monitor/
- ^ http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?id=6195&name=Titus+Andronicus
- ^ http://www.noripcord.com/reviews/music/titus-andronicus/the-monitor
- ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/wfd3
- ^ http://consequenceofsound.net/2010/03/album-review-titus-andronicus-%E2%80%93-the-monitor/
- ^ http://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/35286/Titus-Andronicus-The-Monitor/
- ^ http://www.avclub.com/articles/titus-andronicus-the-monitor,38947/
