Cage The Elephant’s electric performance at Night One at the Capitol Theatre, NY | 10/28/25 | Photos & Review

November 19, 2025 Leave a comment

The last time alternative-indie rockstars Cage The Elephant performed in the New York/New Jersey area on the band’s 2024 “Neon Pill” headlining tour, frontman and broken boy himself Matt Shultz, unfortunately, performed with a broken foot for the majority of the tour. Nonetheless, he did nothing short of putting on an epic performance, but it was now time for NY/NJ to see Shultz at his fullest potential.

On this night, we quickly learned that his “fullest potential” was non-stop energy and enthusiasm, all while his top-tier, studio-sounding vocals bounced throughout the venue. This was not only true for Shultz, but for the powerful musicians behind him in bassist Daniel Tichenor, guitarist Nick Bockrath, drummer Jared Champion, keyboardist Matthan Minster, and, of course, Matt Shultz’s brother and partner in crime, Brad Shultz, on guitar.

Cage The Elephant kicked off the incredible night with a badass opener, “Broken Boy,” which is not only one of my favorite songs from Social Cues (2019) but is an unforgettable, fun tone-setter for the entire performance.

One of the best aspects of their set was how they incorporated songs throughout their impressive two-decade discography, with tracks as early as “Back Against The Wall” and “Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked” from their debut self-titled album (2006), and “Sabertooth Tiger” and “Shake Me Down” from Thank You, Happy Birthday (2011), and as recent as “Ready To Let Go” and “House of Glass” from Social Cues (2019) and “Good Time,” “Skin and Bones” and the title track from Neon Pill (2024).

I was pleased to see that even after all these years, Cage never neglects their fan favorites, continuing to perform standout hits like “Come A Little Closer,” “Cry Baby,” “Spiderhead,” and “Cigarette Daydreams,” which got an impromptu “Sweet Home Alabama” introduction.

A personal highlight of the set was their performance of “Cold Cold Cold,” a song that is not only my favorite Cage The Elephant track, but easily my favorite song of all time (and I listen to a lot of music, so this is saying something). I am glad that this song has made its mark on their setlist, and I’ve had the pleasure of seeing it live before… It makes me tear up nearly every time. There is something in this song that I live and breathe for, and for that, I am ever so appreciative.

The only bummer? The band did not perform some of their staple songs like “In One Ear” (which New Jersey luckily did hear in 2024), and the most devastating was the loss of their show closer, “Teeth.” I really came to appreciate the song after hearing it close the set a few years back, but the other 21 outstanding songs certainly made up for this loss!

The most important takeaway: Cage The Elephant is the real deal. From starting note to final encore, the boys from Kentucky performed an outstanding, dynamic set, ranging from their earlier songs to their latest singles, and everything in between. Their energy radiated from the stage to the back of the venue, with newer fans, seasoned fans, and boyfriends dragged to the show alike, enjoying the songs Cage brought to the Capitol Theatre.

Before Cage’s performance, emerging indie duo hey, nothing took the stage. Composed of Atlanta-based musicians Tyler Mabry and Harlow Phillips, the charismatic best friend duo was nothing short of a breath of fresh air, bringing innovative emo-meets-folk tunes to the stage and true personality to a brand-new audience. I felt like being let into a fun friend group through their witty banter, and it was easy to tell how all the members were comfortable sharing the space.

The band showcased their personalities through and through, moving around on stage with smiles and hilariously introducing their next songs. One of my favorite intros for their song “Waiting Room,” where Harlow shared that the track is about “the time they took away Tyler’s appendix because he’s too damn sexy.” (To which the crowd promptly gave them a “woo!”).

Hey, nothing performed a memorable, dynamic set, everything from the more upbeat tracks like “Sick Dogs,” “The Sink,” and “Hitchhiking” to the slower side in “Maine,” and their latest standout single, “Seeing You.”