Cage the Elephant, Manchester Orchestra, and Silversun Pickups

I recently went to Baltimore to Rams Head Live to check out Cage the Elephant, Manchester Orchestra, and Silversun Pickups.

I had high expectations for Cage the Elephant, as I have really been digging their album recently. They hit the airwaves with "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked" and their most recent single "In One Ear" is starting to pick up steam [It's my favorite song on the album]. Cage the Elephant had great energy from the start, but it took a while for the crowd to respond. I will assume this is due to their lack of exposure to Cage the Elephant. However, after "Wicked" started, the crowd got into the music and fed off their energy. The greatest moment of the whole show came when the lead singer of Cage the Elephant climbed up a speaker to the second floor and sang the second half of the last song. Following the conclusion of the song, the singer jumped from the balcony onto waiting concert-goers, and proceeded to surf to the stage. It was an amazing time and I thoroughly enjoyed this band.

The second set of the night was by Manchester Orchestra. I love their new album, and had heard very good things about them live. I was absolutely impressed with their sound and technical ability. It was amazing how close to their album sound they sounded. My only complaint is that they did not play any older songs. Every song of their set was from the new album. While I thoroughly enjoy the new album, I would liked to at least heard "Wolves at Night" and "Golden Ticket." However, hearing almost the entire new album was a great experience and I want to see them again.

The closer for the night was Silversun Pickups. Their new album is receiving regular play in my car, so I was very excited to see them live. The lead singer impressed me most, as his voice is in no way modified on the album; he sounds the same live as he does on the album. I went absolutely nuts when they broke into "The Royal We," my favorite song off of the new album. I thought their set was very well laid out, mixing slower songs among faster songs to keep the crowd pumped up. The songs "Lazy Eye" and "Panic Switch" were very well executed kept the set moving along.

Overall, the concert was well worth the $40. I enjoyed all three bands and would see each of them again. My only wish is that Manchester Orchestra would have played last with a little more older stuff mixed in.