The record’s second single “Out Loud” was revealed today
This summer, alt-rock juggernauts Cage the Elephant are returning to the road this summer with an extensive North American tour. The run is in support of their forthcoming album Neon Pill, which arrives on May 17 through RCA Records.
Last month, the band premiered the album’s title track. It was their first new piece of material since their 2019 GRAMMY®-winning album, Social Cues. On Thursday, Cage The Elephant revealed the record’s emotional second single, “Out Loud.” The song finds frontman Matthew Shultz and guitarist Brad Shultz dealing with the loss of their father, who passed away in Stream the official lyric video below.
“Maybe it’s so straightforward and honest, because I didn’t know if it would see the light of day,” he admits. “‘Out Loud’ is very connected to my father. My dad’s the reason we discovered music in the first place. When he died, ‘Out Loud’ just poured out of me. My efforts towards the song were deeply rooted in paying honor to him, and I knew it meant a lot to Brad too,” he remarks. That, also in connection with the difficulties that I was dealing with at that time. It was almost a subconscious apology of sorts before I was fully capable of grasping the gravity of it all. Subconsciously working through it while channeling all of the adversity my family faced growing up coming full circle into my adult life in this one song.”
The new record finds the band forging new musical ground, while maintaining their uncompromising creativity and wildly cathartic performances.
“To me, Neon Pill is the first record where we were consistently uninfluenced, and I mean that in a positive way,” says frontman Matthew Shultz. “Everything is undoubtedly expressed through having settled into finding our own voice. We’ve always drawn inspiration from artists we love, and at times we’ve even emulated some of them to a certain degree. With this album, having gone through so much, life had almost forced us into becoming more and more comfortable with ourselves. We weren’t reaching for much outside of the pure experience of self expression, and simultaneously not necessarily settling either. We just found a uniqueness in simply existing.”
The band’s 45-date North American kicks off on June 20 in Salt Lake City with shows in cities including Seattle, Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York City (full dates below), with support from Young The Giant and Bakar on most dates. Tickets and VIP available for all dates will go on sale to the general public on Friday, March 8 at 10 a.m. local here, and numerous presales, including for the band’s Fan Club, Discord, and Spotify followers will begin on Tuesday, March 5 at 10 a.m. local time. For all Canadian dates, American Express® Card Members can purchase tickets before the general public beginning Tuesday, March 5 at 10 a.m. local time through Thursday, March 7 at 10 p.m. local time.
The band recorded Neon Pill at Sonic Ranch in Tornillo, Texas, Electric Lady in New York, Sound Emporium in Nashville, and Echo Mountain in North Carolina. They worked with familiar collaborator John Hill Hill, who produced the band’s previously LP, Social Cues, and recorded some of the record at Hill’s own studio in Los Angeles. The band alchemized a season of tragedy and turbulence into the twelve tracks on their sixth full-length album. Nine months into the pandemic, Matthew and Brad lost their father. The band weathered the back-to-back deaths of friends, while Matthew experience depression and a mental breakdown, culminating in hospitalization. Coming out on the other side, he learned quite a bit about himself, and gained a whole lot of strength and wisdom. Neon Pill came to life in the eye of the storm.
This summer, Cage the Elephant are performing at Bonnaroo alongside Red Hot Chili Peppers, Gary Clark Jr., Jason Isabelle and the 400 Unit, Cigarettes After Sex, Interpol, Taking Back Sunday, The Mars Volta, GWAR, Idles, Michigander, Larkin Poe, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, and more. The festival is locked in for June 13 through June 16, 2024, on the Bonnaroo Farm, located just 60 miles southeast of Nashville in Manchester, Tennessee.Cage the Elephant are coming off a massively successful two-album stretch. The band’s 2015 outing, Tell Me I’m Pretty, garnered the band the GRAMMY® Award for Best Rock Album. Their 2019 effort, Social Cues, took home the same trophy. Cage the Elephant tapped fellow GRAMMY® winner and one-time tour mate Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys to produce Tell Me I’m Pretty.
Pre-Order Neon Pill now HERE
June 20 – West Valley City, UT at Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre^
June 22 – Seattle, WA at Climate Pledge Arena^
June 23 – Ridgefield, WA at RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater^
June 24 – Bend, OR at Hayden Homes Amphitheater^
June 26 – Vancouver, BC at Rogers Arena^
June 28 – Edmonton, AB at Rogers Place^
June 30 – Spokane, WA at BECU Live at Northern Quest^
July 2 – San Francisco, CA at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium*
July 3 – Santa Barbara, CA at Santa Barbara Bowl^~
July 5 – Phoenix, AZ at Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre^
July 6 – San Diego, CA at Viejas Arena^
July 7 – Los Angeles, CA at Kia Forum^
July 9 – Albuquerque, NM at Isleta Amphitheater^
July 11 – Austin, TX at Moody Center^
July 12 – Houston, TX at The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion^
July 13 – Fort Worth, TX at Dickies Arena^
July 15 – Rogers, AR at Walmart AMP^
August 2 – Alpharetta, GA at Ameris Bank Amphitheatre*
August 3 – Raleigh, NC at Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek^
August 4 – Charlotte, NC at PNC Music Pavilion*
August 7 – Noblesville, IN at Ruoff Music Center^
August 8 – Madison, WI at Breese Stevens Field^
August 10 – Winnipeg, MB at Canada Life Centre^
August 12 – Minneapolis, MN at Target Center^
August 14 – Chicago, IL at Credit Union 1 Arena at UIC^
August 16 – Grand Rapids, MI at Van Andel Arena^
August 18 – Saratoga Springs, NY at Broadview Stage at SPAC^
August 19 – Bridgeport, CT at Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater^
August 21 – Gilford, NH at BankNH Pavilion^
August 22 – Mansfield, MA at Xfinity Center*
August 24 – Holmdel, NJ at PNC Bank Arts Center^
August 26 – Montreal, QC at Centre Bell^
August 27 – Toronto, ON at Budweiser Stage^
August 29 – Burgettstown, PA at The Pavilion at Star Lake^
August 30 – Cincinnati, OH at Riverbend Music Center^
September 5 – New York, NY at Madison Square Garden^
September 6 – Philadelphia, PA at TD Pavilion at the Mann^
September 7 – Lewiston, NY at Artpark Mainstage Theater^
September 9 – Cleveland, OH at Blossom Music Center^
September 10 – Detroit, MI at Pine Knob Music Theatre^
September 12 – St. Louis, MO at Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre^
September 13 – Des Moines, IA at Wells Fargo Arena^
September 14 – Kansas City, MO at Starlight Theatre^
September 16 – Omaha, NE at CHI Health Center^
September 18 – Denver, CO at Red Rocks Amphitheatre*
^with Young The Giant and Bakar
*with Bakar