Cage The Elephant, Social Cues, Album Review

Cage The Elephant

Social Cues

Album Review

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Cage The Elephant was a band that was introduced to me through their very first self-titled debut album that was released back in 2008. And while it wasn't until a few years later that I would discover their music through this album, it served as a great gateway into their later music.

And while I still enjoyed their 2015 album Tell Me I'm Pretty quite a lot, I was longing for a Cage The Elephant album that really switched things up from their signature formula that I have come to know so well throughout the years.

And while this latest instalment from the band, titled Social Cues still feels a lot like a Cage the Elephant album and still sticks quite firmly to what they are used to doing in some areas, I feel like it is the closest we have gotten so far to a record that isn't afraid to go a bit further into experimental territory.

This albums arrival was heralded by four teaser tracks. The first of the four; "Ready To Let Go", which came out at the very beginning of February definitely still stands as the most Cage The Elephant sounding of the bunch. But in its defence, this makes the most sense for the track that essentially stands at the transitional point between their last album and this one.

The next two teaser tracks to follow really impressed me. "House Of Glass" blew me away with its incredibly sinister and moody atmosphere created by the deep bass riff and vocals that sounded like they were being spoken through clenched teeth. And while I initially considered the following teaser "Night Running" featuring Beck to be a step down at first, the song really grew on my to the point where I would regard it as one of the finest tracks the album has to offer.

The final teaser track "Goodbye" was clearly made to be the albums closing song. Despite being aesthetically generic, I couldn't help but feel deeply connected to its melancholy melody.

With these four tracks in mind, I really did have the bar set extremely high for the rest of the album before it finally came.

And while the first track of he full album; "Broken Boy" made sure that the album got off to an incredible start. There were many of the new tracks that I regarded as ones that easily could've been on any other Cage The Elephant Album and would've fitted right in (better than on this album in-fact).

Despite this, I do digress as various songs on this album do carry through the traditional C.T.E aesthetic to a great degree while still being highly enjoyable songs. Most notably tracks like "Skin and Bones" and "Dance Dance", both very warm glowing songs that force my brain into festival mode. On the other side of the spectrum however are tracks like "Black Madonna" which comes across to me as a really generic indie tune with uninspired vocals and "Love's The Only Way" which just felt so dull and forgettable throughout.

But in comparison to the few hiccups on this album, there are far more songs to regard as great tracks. Other noteworthy track I haven't yet mentioned include the title track which makes for a pleasant listen with just enough of a quirk to keep things interesting. "The War Is Over" with its hard-hitting rhythm and poetic lyrics, and finally the awesome "Tokyo Smoke" which could best be described as a much more sinister sounding version of their Melophobia track "Come A Little Closer".

Despite my expectations towards this album prior to its release (which I may of set just a bit too high) ultimately hindering my hype towards this album a little, Social Cues is miles away from being dissapointing. As it still stands, it is an album containing some of my favourite Cage the Elephant songs to date. And while Anderson .Paak's Ventura hogged the spotlight a little bit this bank holiday weekend just gone, this is an album that you would regret ignoring. So stream it now!


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Booth Boy