Walking into the Bell Centre, I got a surreal feeling that it had been 15 years since I’d first seen Cage the Elephant at Metropolis. They were like the funky, quirky Pixies. They were part of a wave of offbeat bands that seemed to be trying to resurrect the “alternative” scene of the nineties. While I was a big fan of their debut, but I couldn’t have foreseen them following up the success of “Aint No Rest for the Wicked,” which screams one hit wonder, with a more mature, anthemic sound that would fill arenas for decades. But countless anthems, here we are gathered for their fourth Bell Center show (and a standout performance at Osheaga.)
Willow Avalon graced the stage to warm up the crowd that was pouring in. I’ll preface this by saying I consider the recent rise in popularity of country music to be a pox upon society. Nonetheless, I did appreciate her performance; she’s got a unique sound that strays from the homogenized stuff on the radio and beckons back to the olden days of country when it was rebellious. Shout out to her merch manager who made t-shirts saying “Wilow Avalon punched me in the face and I liked it.” Not gonna lie, I’d have bought one if they weren’t 55$.
Next up was Bakar. This felt like a throwback to that original Cage the Elephant album: fun and playful indie rock. I will say the level of energy on stage didn’t always match the music, but overall, it was a great time, and it started getting the crowd dancing.
Young the Giant came out to a huge ovation, opening with “Jungle Youth.” While this isn’t a co-headline situation, it was clear there were a lot of Young the Giant fans in the crowd, singing along to every song. The band brought a headlining aura and energy to the stage. Vocalist Sameer Gadhia looked like he was gonna lead us all into prayer dressed in all white linen, but then again, music is a religion that helps heal so I suppose he did.
These guys were experts at connecting to the crowd. The hourlong set had very few lulls, which is a huge accomplishment for a supporting act. There were however a few peaks. There was a fever pitch for their breakout hit “My Body” which perfectly set up the main event by having the crowd sway from side to side while screaming.
For our main event, hailing from Bowling Green, Kentucky weighing in at a total combined weight of a tonne of rock, Cage the Elephant! The band rolled onto stage with high energy. In the case of vocalist Matt Schultz, he literally rolled in on some sort of modified scooter, designed to help him get around on a broken foot, an injury he had suffered on stage in Georgia. They ironically opened with “Broken Boy,” but it was clear that the injury wasn’t going to stop Schultz from rocking out with the crowd. He traded in his usual jumps and pacing to scooter tricks like a one-legged Tony Hawk.
Following up with “Cry Baby,” “Spiderhead,” “Too Late to Say Goodbye,” “Good Time” and “Cold Cold Cold” they just came out with a solid 25 minutes of frantic in your face energy with banger after banger.
They look like Weeker meets Lynrd Skynrd, but own the stage like they’re Van Halen. Guitarist Brad Schultz kept coming out to the front of the crowd and stealing fans’ hats and glasses and taking selfies with them wearing their accessories.
Eventually, we hit some of the more swaying sing-alongs, like “Halo” and “Trouble,” which had people waving their arms from side to side and attempting to drown out the band. Emotions flew all over the place. Schultz had fun getting the crowd to cheer for him every time he stood out of his apparatus.
It was then time to get our dancing shoes back on for the breakthrough “Aint No Rest For the Wicked.” The set was closed out with high energy with “In One Ear” and a blistering “Sabretooth Tiger” that had some harsh vocals that would put some metal singers to shame.
Encore time. Have you ever ended your evening by loudly singing “Shake Me Down”, “Cigarette Daydeams” and “Come a Little Closer” with twelve thousand of your closest strangers? I highly recommend. It’s kinda magical.
Review – Richard Brunette
Photos – Steve Gerrard
