Titus Andronicus has been celebrating the release of their album, The Will To Live, this year, but they’ve also leaned into the festive mood with the release of their first-ever standalone holiday single, “Drummer Boy”. They’ve also shared plans to ring in the new year with additional tour dates across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Ireland.
“Drummer Boy” takes the music of Billy Joel’s anthem “Piano Man” and uses it to tell the story of the nativity from the perspective of “The Little Drummer Boy,” made famous in the 1958 Christmas classic of the same name by the Harry Simeone Chorale. Bassist R.J. Gordon also recites the passage from The Gospel of Luke which waas immortalized by Linus in A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Singer-songwriter Patrick Stickles explains:
I first connected the dots between the great Billy Joel song and the beloved Christmas standard several years ago, but it got tossed onto the pile with so many of my other crazy ideas. Things being how they are, though, I may not have the luxury of time to execute all those crazy ideas, so when we had two days off in Montreal on our recent tour, we figured we’d grab the reindeer by the antlers and cross this one off the list, so as to avoid the pain of eternal regret. Also, I’ve noticed a lot of discourse recently about what constitutes a legitimate ‘parody’ lately, and I’d like to get a piece of that action.
To create this song, Titus Andronicus reunited with The Will to Live Producer Howard Bilerman at his Hotel 2 Tango recording studio in Montreal, QC. Also contributing to the fun are members of the Canadian rock band Partner, as well as once-and-future Titus Andronicus tour companions Country Westerns.
To make things even cozier, “Drummer Boy” comes packaged in an official lyric video that doubles as a “fireplace for the home,” ensuring that no listener will go without a proper hearth this holiday.
TITUS ANDRONICUS TOUR 2023
Feb 3 Limerick, IE – Pharmacia
Feb 4 Dublin, IE – The Grand Social
Feb 7 Edinburgh, UK – The Mash House
Feb 8 Glasgow, UK – Broadcast
Feb 9 Manchester, UK – YES (Pink Room)
Feb 10 Leeds, UK – Belgrave Music Hall
Feb 11 Sunderland, UK – Pop Recs
Feb 13 Nottingham, UK – Bodega
Feb 14 Birmingham, UK – Hare and Hounds
Feb 15 Cardiff, UK – Clwb Ifor Bach
Feb 16 Brighton, UK – The Hope and Ruin
Feb 17 London, UK – Moth Club
Feb 18 London, UK – Moth Club
Feb 28 Pittsburgh, PA – Thunderbird
Mar 1 Cleveland, OH – Grog Shop
Mar 2 Chicago, IL – Bottom Lounge
Mar 3 Madison, WI – High Noon Saloon
Mar 4 St Paul, MN – Turf Club
Mar 5 Fargo, ND – Aquarium
Mar 7 Great Falls, MT – Newberry
Mar 8 Spokane, WA – Lucky You Lounge
Mar 9 Vancouver, BC – Fox Theatre
Mar 10 Seattle, WA – Sunset Tavern
Mar 11 Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios
Mar 14 Sacramento, CA – Harlow’s
Mar 15 San Francisco, CA – The Chapel
Mar 16 Santa Cruz, CA – Catalyst
Mar 17 Los Angeles, CA – Teragram Ballroom
Mar 18 San Diego, CA – The Casbah
Mar 21 Phoenix, AZ – Rebel Lounge
Mar 22 Albuquerque, NM – Launchpad
Mar 23 Denver, CO – Globe Hall
Mar 28 Omaha, NE – Slowdown
Mar 29 Iowa City, IA – Gabe’s
Mar 31 Bloomington, IN – Bishop
Apr 1 Columbus, OH – Big Room Bar
Apr 2 Richmond, VA – Richmond Music Hall
Apr 4 Washington, DC – Black Cat
Apr 5 Baltimore, MD – Ottobar
Apr 7 Asbury Park, NJ – Asbury Lanes
Apr 8 Brooklyn, NY – Elsewhere (Hall)
Jun 1 McGill, NV – Schellraiser Festival
