REVIEW: Cage the Elephant and Beck burn the stage on ‘Night Running’ tour
As a long-time Cage the Elephant fan, I was elated to see the spectacular and eclectic garage rock band turned Grammy award-winning alternative rockers perform live on their “Night Running” tour at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands.
Many of the instances where I’ve caught the band performing prior to this tour included festivals such as Float Fest in 2016 and Dallas’ own Edgefest in 2014, where I saw the band open for ‘90s alternative rock superstar and headliner, Beck, only to return two years later as the headliners for Edgefest 26.
Their incredible rise from the band behind the “Borderlands” introduction song “Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked” to big time award-winning radio rockers over the past decade has been a tremendous journey for the band and their fans. “Come a Little Closer” rapidly expanded their fanbase and turned them into one of alternative rock’s most treasured with their 2013 album “Melophobia.”
The follow-up, “Tell Me I’m Pretty,” saw Cage the Elephant pivot as The Black Keys’ frontman Dan Auerbach took the production helm and presented a softer side of the band as they explored the roots of rock ‘n’ roll with The Rolling Stones-tinged tracks such as “Cold Cold Cold” and classic rock balladry a-la “Trouble.”
Their latest record, “Social Cues,” was received favorably among fans and critics alike. The album contains the Beck collaboration “Night Running,” for which this brilliant co-headliner was named.
Beginning the show was the electronic and jazz-inspired sibling pop duo Wild Belle, who dazzled the audience with their psychedelic reggae-pop and smooth saxophones amid electronic percussion and smooth vocals from frontwoman Natalie Bergman.
Seasoned alt-rockers Spoon followed Wild Belle. The Band recently released a greatest hits album, “Everything Hits at Once: The Best of Spoon.” As such, the band performed a set full of their greatest hits both old and new, performing staples “The Underdog,” “I Turn My Camera On” and the title track of their latest full-length album “Hot Thoughts.”
Somewhat unexpectedly, Cage the Elephant took the stage prior to their co-headliner Beck, leaving a lot to be desired as Beck closed out the evening with a relatively low energy set. Cage the Elephant frontman Matt Schultz’s eclectic costuming, frequent visitation to the lower sections of the crowd and raw unbridled energy made for a fiery set.
Opening their set with the first track of their latest record, “Broken Boy,” was hard-hitting and high tempo with its kraut-rock inspired chords and spastic blast beats as Schultz danced around the stage, emoting with his entire body like a hyperactive zombie donning a full-body masquerade.
Song by song, Schultz removed his masquerade piece by piece until he was only wearing nude colored leggings and athletic tape, pieces of which he peeled off after scaling a spotlight tower and threw into the crowd after concluding their set with the equally raw and spastic “Teeth.”
Cage played a tasteful mixture of tracks from “Melophobia,” “Social Cues” and “Tell Me I’m Pretty.” The band only played one track from each of their first two records, “Shake Me Down” from their sophomore album, “Thank You Happy Birthday” and the famous “Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked” from their self-titled debut.
To close out the night, Beck opened his set with one of his biggest classics, “Loser.”
Boasting incredible visuals and performing gusto, Beck laid out a set full of fun alternative rock tracks spanning his wide and genre varying discography.
To close out the set, Beck returned for an encore with “Where It’s At,” followed by two short covers, one of “What a Fool Believes” from The Doobie Brothers and another of Prince’s “When Doves Cry.”
Finally, Beck welcomed Cage the Elephant back to the stage to perform their collaborated effort, “Night Running.” This was a well-earned closer for a fun show full of alt-rock energy.
These three legendary artists, Beck, Cage the Elephant and Spoon, accompanied by newcomers Wild Belle made for a fantastic night of rock ‘n’ roll in Houston.
Listen to Beck’s latest single, “Saw Lightning,” Cage the Elephant’s new album, “Social Cues” and Spoon’s new Greatest Hits compilation, and see them on The Night Running tour before it’s over.
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