Titus Andronicus is a band providing its audience with an escape from everyday life.

“The best rock ’n’ roll concerts will allow those that attend them to forget all their other troubles for a couple hours,” said Patrick Stickles, the bands’ vocalist/guitarist.

The group will perform with the So So Glos and local band Birth Rites today at 10 p.m. at the Mill, 120 E. Burlington St. Admission is $8.

Stickles incorporates existential and antiestablishment ideas into the music of Titus Andronicus — a band known for its high-energy, dense tunes. He said he aims to give his listeners the same kind of escape he received from music in his younger years.

“I see the young kids throwing their arms around each other … just kind of forgetting all of their worries even for just a little while, you know,” he said.

With influences ranging from Nietzche to the English punk band Crass, Titus Andronicus (which is known for its philosophically punk songs) considers a night fulfilled if it simply provided the audience with a good night out.

The thrill of the tour is what he said keeps the group playing, and creating, and driving across a nation of venues, members said.

What Titus Andronicus gains from its time on the road is a strictly what he calls a personal affair.

“We go to these out-of-the-way towns, and we see the vibrancy and the exuberance of their scenes … it can be very inspiring,” Stickles said.

When Titus Andronicus came to Iowa City for the first time last winter, the band was taken by surprise at the responsiveness of the local crowd.

“Iowa City rocks,” Stickles said.

— by Ryan Fosmark