Bonnaroo Band of the Day: Cage the Elephant

As we’ve been doing for the past several years now, we’re making it our mission to help you get acquainted with many of our favorites acts from from Bonnaroo‘s impressive 2017 lineup. As we dig through the entire schedule, we’ll highlight a spread of performers spanning across genres and stages, big and small, new and old, to bring you some of the most interesting, lesser-known, or most highly-reccomened among this year’s crop of artists. Though we’ll be jumping around, we’re loosely working our way through by day, and we’ll also be bringing you some special features and longer guides along the way, to help you plan your weekend before the fest. While these previews won’t span every performer, and might omit some more obvious must-see acts, we hope they’ll serve as a way to help you navigate Bonnaroo’s gargantuan lineup, and to make the most of your busy weekend on the farm!

Grab your tickets right here if you haven’t already, and keep reading to learn more about our Bonnaroo Band of the Day…

LEARN

Formed a decade ago in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and based in Nashville for the last few years, eclectic rockers Cage the Elephant are undoubtedly one of the biggest grassroots musical success stories in modern rock. Anchored by brothers Matt (vocals) and Brad (guitar) Shultz, and rounded out by Jared Champion (drums) and Daniel Tichenor (bass), the longtime friends had all taken part in various other musical projects in the Bowling Green scene, and worked odd jobs until forming and deciding to funnel all of their focus into Cage. After briefly living in London, the band scored a record deal, and found near-instant success with their platinum selling breakout single “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked,” from their eponymous 2008 debut. With a swam of TV appearances, festival outings, and tours, the group began to settle into their own, trading the more blues, classic, and garage rock tendencies of their debut for a decidedly more punk and alternative direction with sophomore effort Thank You, Happy Birthday.

By 2013’s Grammy nominated Melophobia, Cage, squarely planted in Nashville, had not only cemented their status as one of the best, most energetic live bands on the planet, touring with the likes of Foo Fighters, Manchester Orchestra, Queens of the Stone Age, and Muse, but had finally settled into a sound all their own, building upon what came before, while further pushing genre boundaries and incorporating elements of psychedelic rock, letting their expansive, confident artistry flourish. The band, now certifiable rockstars and festival staples, worked with Black Keys frontman Dan Auerbach on 2015’s Tell Me I’m Pretty, tracked largely live and analog and marking a more personal, nostalgic sound that calls back to their earliest influences. Versatile, authentic, and unparalleled, Cage the Elephant, whether blowing the roof off of big arenas or rocking out to a couple hundred fans (as they still often do in Nashville – how many bands their size can say that?) are, perhaps, the best rock band in the world right now, and as amazing as their growing catalog is already, it’s their live show that you have to see to believe.

LISTEN | “Trouble”