Artist

Cage the Elephant

Bowling Green, United States · Formed 2006

Cage the Elephant is a music group from Bowling Green, United States, active since 2006. Their discography on Gatefold includes 11 records.

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Albums tracked

187

In collections

2006

Since

Biography

The Shultz brothers were tracking their debut in London because no American label would touch a bunch of Kentucky kids playing garage rock in 2008. They signed to Relentless and leaned into the British indie-rock boom to survive, resulting in a self-titled record that sounds like they were trying to out-swagger the Hives while hiding a country-soul heart. It’s twitchy and desperate. It’s the sound of a band terrified of having to move back to Bowling Green and work at the plumbing supply shop again. By the time they hit the mid-2010s, they realized being a radio-ready rock band was a trap. Working with Dan Auerbach on 'Tell Me I’m Pretty' was the move that saved them from becoming a festival-circuit punchline, forcing them to strip away the over-produced glitz for a raw, feedback-heavy grit that felt earned. They trade in vulnerability now, especially after 'Social Cues' leaned into the wreckage of a divorce and the paranoia of the spotlight. They’re still a massive touring act, but the records have gotten darker and more claustrophobic even as the stages got bigger.

Bio from The Clerk

The Arc of Cage the Elephant

The pivots — what forced Cage the Elephant to reinvent.

The London Exile
Facing zero traction in the States, the band relocated to England to cut their debut with producer Jay Joyce. This era is defined by a frantic, high-gain energy that mirrored the UK's post-punk revival more than the American South's garage scene. You hear it in the jagged riffs and Matt Shultz’s frantic delivery, which felt less like a choice and more like a survival tactic for a band living in a cramped flat far from home.
The Melophobia Shift
Exhausted by the pressure to repeat their early radio success, the band hit a creative wall that led to the 'Melophobia' sessions. They intentionally stopped listening to any outside music to scrub away the influence of their peers and focus on weird, idiosyncratic song structures. This pivot introduced the brass sections and psychedelic textures that moved them away from simple 'Ain't No Rest for the Wicked' blues-rock into something far more experimental.
The Easy Eye Strip-Down
The band tapped Dan Auerbach to produce 'Tell Me I’m Pretty' at his Easy Eye Sound studio, which shifted the focus to first takes and vintage gear. Auerbach pushed them to embrace a 1960s garage-pop aesthetic, cutting back the layered arrangements of their previous work for a more hollow, punchy sound. It brought a certain swagger back to the rhythm section, emphasizing the pocket over the polish.

Influences

The Pixies — Matt Shultz has cited 'Doolittle' as the blueprint for his songwriting philosophy. You hear it in the loud-quiet-loud dynamic shifts on tracks like 'In One Ear' and that specific brand of manic vocal delivery. It's the nervous energy that keeps their rock songs from feeling too steady.
Iggy Pop — The band eventually collaborated with him on 'Broken Boy,' but his DNA was there since the start. Shultz’s unhinged, physical stage presence is a direct descendant of 'Raw Power' era Iggy. It’s about the performative danger that keeps a show from feeling like a rehearsed routine.
Beck — They spent a massive summer co-headlining the 'Night Running' tour with him after years of referencing his genre-blending style. You hear his influence in their later willingness to use hip-hop cadences and lo-fi acoustic textures alongside heavy riffs. They learned how to be weird and accessible at the same time from him.
Pavement — The band has explicitly called out Stephen Malkmus’s influence on the 'Thank You, Happy Birthday' sessions. That record’s more dissonant, slacker-rock moments are a clear nod to the 90s indie underground. It’s the sound of a band trying to get un-famous as fast as possible.
The Rolling Stones — Lincoln Parish used to obsess over Mick Taylor-era Stones licks during their early years. The sleazy, blues-based foundation of their biggest hits comes straight from 'Sticky Fingers.' It’s the grease that keeps the garage-rock engine running.