TItus Andronicus

Let's Wrestle

Bootleg - March 23, 2010

Live Review by Adam McKibbin

Fresh off buzz-boosting shows at SXSW and riding a wave of positive press for their new album, The Monitor, celebrated Jersey punks Titus Andronicus came to L.A. for a night of congenial mayhem. Everything about The Monitor is big, of course - a loose punk concept album about the Civil War, with plenty of songs hovering in the non-punk range of 7-9 minutes, until the band finally says "Let's dig in" on the 14-minute "The Battle of Hampton Roads."

Perhaps predictably, then, it proves to be an album that translates to the stage in a sprawling, electric fashion for those already smitten with the material - while casual fans and newcomers may feel like they've bitten off a little more than can chew with all the emotional and ear-ringing bombast (their set has more fake-out big finishes than Avatar).

On record, the Oberstian quality of Patrick Stickles' vocals can be occasionally distracting, and that's coming from someone who's generally kind of meh about Bright Eyes and Desaparacidos - and the fact that Stickles is good-naturedly aware of those echoes and the fact that it's become a tired cliche to even bring them up does not make them less distracting. On stage, though, Stickles is a punk rocker first and foremost, splintering his voice, banging his head, climbing speakers, and generally doing everything one could want from a manic, energetic frontman - especially important given the fact that his bandmates, for the most part, aren't especially interesting to watch (although guitarist/violinist Amy Klein's smiling enthusiasm was contagious).

Most of the band's new songs seem to pack an album's worth of arc into their runtime, and the fiery crescendos quickly started to soften up the crowd like uppercuts from a heavyweight, starting most noticeably with an explosive version of the "Tramps like us, baby, we were born to die" gear shift in "A More Perfect Union." Fists went aloft. Solemn head-nodding became a little more fiery. Then, as the band hit their stride and got into the meat of their set... holy fucking shit, a mosh pit! As jubilant stomping commenced down below, Stickles & Co. reciprocated with energy and enjoyment (Stickles in particular looking relieved by the progress). As the monster riffs continued and Stickles shredded his voice in the name of anthemic punk rock, the night seemed on its way to becoming truly memorable - especially since the band could very well be playing a considerably less intimate venue on their next headlining tour.

Alas, it wasn't quite meant to be, as every time happy moshers connected, the Bootleg's security swung the hammer and shut things down, which sucked the air out of the crowd and seemed to piss off Titus Andronicus (Stickles politely protested by pointing out that this was, in fact, just how people danced to punk music - but it was to no avail). The night never totally recovered, though it was still a mighty set that has forged a closer connection for me with The Monitor.

Going into the evening, I knew I was supposed to be more excited about the headliner, but was enjoying a different debut album a little more: In the Court of the Wrestling Let's by the affably punky UK trio Let's Wrestle. The new kids on the block at the indie-star breeding ground that is Merge Records, Let's Wrestle write sloppy but deceptively smart punk tracks that are a little more traditional: three minutes with big hooks and pop-friendly melodies.

Their ba-ba-ba sing-alongs and handclap rhythms translate very well, of course, to a live setting - even if LA is possibly the worst place in the world for an opening act to try to get an enforced audience clap-along going. Right now they are still losing some of their distinctive sound in favor of a raw and somewhat muddy live sound that swallows up nuance - although it was still clear that bassist Mike Lightning is the not-so-secret ingredient in the band's songs.

Their bouncy set bopped past in seemingly about the same time that it took one of Titus Andronicus' single-song punk jam sessions to wrap up. Unlike the headliner, with Let's Wrestle I still prefer the album versions to my memory of the live songs. They're still something of an enigma at this point; while they often are presented (or present themselves) as piss-takers, and their music is fun and good-spirited, frontman Wesley Patrick Gonzalez is a quite serious presence on stage. So it's not quite all coming together for Let's Wrestle just yet - or at least it didn't on this night - but they've already nailed down the toughest part: writing songs that are worth a damn. I still wouldn't be surprised if they have Titus levels of buzz chasing them around in the near future.