Live Review: Cage The Elephant – O2 Ritz, Manchester.
- Simon Harwood
- Feb 20, 2016
- 4 min read
My relationship with Cage the Elephant began with their blues-punk, self-titled debut album; eight strong years and four wacky albums later and I’m still in love. Our relationship was pretty long-distance, up until my date with Cage on the 20th February at the O2 Ritz in Manchester.
To saddle me up for our evening of romance, from the same dusty Tennessee roots as the headline act, were the psychedelic-rock quartet, Chrome Pony. As soon as I heard the lead singer, I made an immediate connection to Cage the Elephant’s Woodstock revival vibe. Complete with organ keys, wailing guitar riffs and vocals alike, this band had taken a very obvious leaf from Cage’s book, but why not? Psychedelic rock is a music scene often overlooked in modern music, however with neo-psychedelic acts such as Tame Impala giving the genre more relevance, spaces in the market are being opened up.
Despite the lead singer’s jiggly dance efforts, Chrome Pony played their set rather modestly. The bassist seemed the shyest, regardless of his fluorescent-yellow hat and gold medallion combo. The band just didn’t deliver the vitality needed to get the crowd’s feet shuffling. Their sound was deserving of a lot more; the jazz-inflected breakdowns from tracks such as ‘Ragged Child’ should’ve received more than just the occasional head-bob, and the hippie-jive riffs from ‘Ciggy Stardust’ was at least worthy of a boogie. Perhaps the band of four didn’t present much passion due to the nerves that come with playing for another band’s audience, but their sound alone spoke loud enough for itself, and I’m sure Chrome Pony will still reach the people’s playlists despite their apparent lack of appreciation. It’s still early stages for Chrome Pony and they have a creative spark, but that spark needs to become a fire if they hope to be free from the confines of being the lesser man’s Cage the Elephant.
Okay so my date with Cage the Elephant wasn’t going to be as intimate as I fantasized; no candle-lit dinner, no roses and none of Wham’s ‘Careless Whispers’ to soundtrack our tense ride home. To add to my disappointment, our evening had been gate-crashed by 1500 other mistresses, but Cage were still set to serenade, and as soon as their presence was made with the opening riff to ‘Cry Baby’, our hearts and legs started jumping. Matt Shultz pre-emptively addressed Manchester as “the best crowd ever” before unleashing ‘In One Ear’ which shook the room and initiated the mosh pits.
The energy that Cage the Elephant generated in that 1-hour and 30-minute set could wipe out the sun as being our most reliable power source. Drinks were lobbed by the crowd and guitars were tossed by Brad, the crowd quaked while Matt shook, staggered and screamed at the swarm while barely managing to breathe.
Their set comprised material from their latest album, ‘Tell Me I’m Pretty’. This album continued the band’s drive to do something different with each album, and this time, by eliciting an enjoyable blues orientated sound, as a result of this, the album wasn’t as frenzied in comparison to their material prior. Their new songs such as ‘Cold Cold Cold’ and ‘Mess Around’ gave Matt a chance to keep more of a cool as they showcased their additionally subtle and organized aesthetic, giving the crowd room to dance rather than violently spilling from wall to wall.
So far, I deem every single one of Cage’s albums to be near flawless, so it wouldn’t be difficult for them to impress me with any of the material that they decided to play. That being said, songs like ‘Teeth’ and ‘It’s Just Forever’ that I didn’t consider to be very strong tracks, were revived when played live. Cage played crowd favourites such as ‘Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked’, ‘Spiderhead’ and left the stage with ‘Come A Little Closer’, but they weren’t going to leave that easily, as we chanted “We want more! We want more!”.
With this return, the gloves were off. Matt’s shirt was off. The Elephant broke the Cage open when they finished on their rabid anthem, ‘Sabertooth Tiger”. This performance had turned feral. Matt dived into the crowd at the big build, while screaming and convulsing through the crowd, when finally, at the long pause, is held up by the fans below to observe his worshippers and with a big breath…” IT’S A SABERTOOTH TIGER” and throws himself even further into the turmoil, while the band deliver an instrumental of unadulterated chaos. Matt finally battles his way back to the stage to the sound of his cheering fans. The band struggle to leave as they congregate to wave goodbye. Matt finally leaves with, “You never disappoint, Manchester” as Brad walks down to greet the fans at the front row. As I turn to go, grinning ear-to-ear, I discover the fluorescent-hatted bassist for Chrome Pony capturing the aftermath with a camera. I pat “John” on the back and give him some short words of encouragement, as if my night didn’t already have a happy ending. My only regret is being too poor to buy a t-shirt.
This performance should stand as an example for why live music is still important, and that it’s still something to be attended and believed in, even if I didn’t fulfil my dreams of sharing spaghetti with them, Lady and the Tramp style.
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