{"product_id":"titus-andronicus-a-productive-cough","title":"Titus Andronicus - A Productive Cough","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIncluded in:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e-\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.slantmagazine.com\/features\/article\/the-25-best-singles-of-2018\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSlant’s Best Singles of 2018\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e [#24 “Above the Bodega (Local Business)”]\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSince debuting in 2008, \u003cstrong\u003eTitus Andronicus\u003c\/strong\u003e [hereafter +@] has been conditioning faithful listeners to always expect only the unexpected, consistently zigging where others would zag and maintaining a steadfast dedication to fearless ambition. With the release of the new studio album \u003ci\u003eA Productive Cough\u003c\/i\u003e, +@ has executed the most shocking departure yet—but only if, as ever mercurial singer-songwriter Patrick Stickles insists, “you haven’t been paying attention.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn a move that may infuriate the black-denim-and-PBR set, \u003ci\u003eA Productive Cough\u003c\/i\u003e finds +@ setting aside the leadfooted punk anthems of yesteryear in favor of a subtler, more spacious approach that pushes Stickles’ soul-baring songwriting to the fore, creating a conversational intimacy between artist and audience with which previous +@ efforts had only flirted. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis new restraint sacrifices none of +@’s singular intensity, from the merciless lyrical onslaught of “Number One (In New York)” to the blistering guitar solos which accompany the swaggering (Crazy) Horseplay of rock band workouts “Real Talk” and “Home Alone” to the disarmingly passionate commuter hymn “Mass Transit Madness (Goin’ Loco’).” Even the surprisingly groovy “Above the Bodega (Local Business)” hides, beneath its loose and spontaneous facade of zesty brass and propulsive congas, a pained admission of secret shame, despairing the challenge of keeping the dark side concealed before the ever-judgmental eye of the big city.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“The last record [2015’s rock opera \u003ca href=\"\/products\/titus-andronicus-the-most-lamentable-tragedy\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Most Lamentable Tragedy\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e] was very much a culmination of all that had come before—closing, or really slamming, a lot of doors,” Stickles explains, “and to move forward, I had to look for a new door to walk through, only to find a window which had been cracked open all along. [\u003ci\u003eA Productive Cough\u003c\/i\u003e] is the gentle breeze which had been wafting through, which I can breathe in fully at last.”\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"merge records","offers":[{"title":"Peak Vinyl (Blue Gray Marble)","offer_id":52739213295927,"sku":"MRG606lp-C1","price":25.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP","offer_id":52739213230391,"sku":"MRG606LP","price":19.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":52739213263159,"sku":"MRG606CD","price":14.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Download","offer_id":52739213328695,"sku":"MRG606digital","price":7.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0966\/3935\/3143\/files\/584fa4d3cc28d0f61000c81705d25e68926896c8_da5cf8934718065cf59ed0efcf7d32c8cc3a4ed1_medium_jpg.jpg?v=1789600404","url":"https:\/\/mergerecords.com\/products\/titus-andronicus-a-productive-cough","provider":"Merge Records","version":"1.0","type":"link"}