REVIEW: CAGE THE ELEPHANT AT BRISTOL O2 ACADEMY (05/10/11)
When a band open with the triumphant slammer ‘In One Ear’ as Cage The Elephant did, a standard of frenetic energy is set for the evenings entertainment. Followed by the equally obnoxious ‘2024’ the Kentucky drop outs put on an effortlessly cool show to the adoring Bristol crowd.
With the voice of lead singer Matthew Shultz being just about as American as can be, all the tracks are constantly on the edge of becoming unbearably whiney but his shaggy mop of hair that provides the best head bang in rock works as the bands remedy to basically becoming a braver Blink 182. Their second LP, ‘Thank You Happy Birthday’ is a messy piece of work with distorted patches of guitar splatted on to some truly hypnotic melodies. None proved this as much as the pre-encore penultimate ‘Shake Me Down’ a song with possibly the most stirring build in recent years. The simple but everlasting hook “Even on a cloudy day” saw the aggressive crowd fall for Shultz’s nasal crooning. The showmanship of him as a lead singer is fundamental to Cage The Elephant’s live show. In the past he’s been known to literally be walked across an audience with crowd members lifting his feet along. There wasn’t quite this level tonight but he would reach out and tickle the fingertips of devoted fans to keep the energy at fever pitch.
The fact of the matter is he makes the live shows so perfect as he encapsulates the carefree silliness that a band like Cage The Elephant should have. Old favorites like ‘Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked’ are wonderful carry with them a sense of immaturity and simplistic fun that Shultz reflects with his on-stage mischief. By the encore of ‘False Skorpian’ which was quite literally a blast of noise with the main man writhing around the stage like the worlds biggest Cage The Elephant fan. As a performer, Shultz makes the show a success. Bristol could only match his restlessness but in doing so the night was lively, energetic and indisputably fun. As Cage The Elephant take the record around the world and inevitably hit the studio again, part of me hopes there ever-growing fan base doesn’t infect them with a desire to become a more ernest outfit. We need songs that Matthew Shultz can go mad for, because as long as he does- we will too.
Words: Duncan Harrison
Photot: Cair Vaughn via Flickr
