(RCA)
REVIEW by ZAK SLOMAN
‘Tell Me I’m Pretty’ is the fourth studio album from alternative rock band Cage the Elephant.
Their last offering ‘Melophobia’, released in 2013, saw the Kentucky group attempt to establish their own distinctive musical identity, which they achieved rather successfully, and earned them a Grammy nomination.
The foundations that were laid with that album have been built upon, the sound is even more eclectic, the band borrowing elements from such groups as the Rolling Stones and New Order.
However, they make it their own, through frontman Matt Shultz showing off his talent for writing frank, personal lyrics in such tracks as the opening song ‘Cry Baby’, a veiled attack on materialism, ‘Sweetie Little Jean’, dealing with the disappearance of one of Shultz’s childhood friends, and ‘Punchin’ Bag’, about a woman who decides to fight back against her abusive husband.
It is a piece that requires attention, it isn’t something to dip in and out of, which is positive though, as every track has a unique and distinctive style to it.
Like most albums, ‘Tell Me I’m Pretty’ does have a constant, overall theme, which is love, even though it does require a few listens to get it, and is more subtle in some songs than others.
Overall, Cage The Elephant have created an album that, with its diverse sound and strong lyrics, will appeal to fans who like talented bands with musical variety.
TOP TRACK: ‘Too Late To Say Goodbye’