Cage the Elephant’s ‘Neon Pill’ Tour Takes Over the Woodlands with a Stacked Lineup

Beloved indie-rock band Cage the Elephant celebrates the release of their latest album Neon Pill at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in the Woodlands with support from Young the Giant, Bakar and Willow Avalon.

Earlier in the year, Cage the Elephant released their long-awaited 6th album titled Neon Pill, and it was only time the band went on the road. The 2x Grammy Award Winning band have made their mark as indie darlings through their highly successful albums like Thank You, Happy Birthday and Melophobia. They didn’t stop there as they continued to polish their classic rock sound in albums like Tell Me I’m Pretty and Social Cues. Cage the Elephant remained euphoric and brought on a fresh take with Neon Pill, which was something all fans were excited to see how such emotion could translate on stage.

The lineup features a unique blend of artists, all important to their respective genres. After the pouring rain calmed down in the humid city of Houston, fans rushed to the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion located outside of Houston. Starting off the night was pop-country singer Willow Avalon, who sported a beautiful white, embroidered fit joined by a microphone stand wrapped in a flower garland. The singer played her guitar to her tune “Stranger,” immediately followed by tracks like “Gettin’ Rich, Goin’ Broke” and “Tequila or Whiskey.” Avalon resembled the folk-country likings of artists like First Aid Kit and Kacey Musgraves, which allowed her to ready the audience. In the middle of her set, she stopped to call her mom and had Houston tell her “Happy Birthday” over FaceTime, a touching sentiment for Avalon. While Avalon’s sound style was out-of-the-ordinary pick for the opening slate, she charmed audiences with her southern twang, as Houston welcomed her with open arms.

Up next was London-based singer Bakar, who began his career by remixing popular indie tracks from artists like Bombay Bicycle Club. He performed “All In” as his opening song, which immediately hyped up the crowd. While the venue was still filling up, Bakar provided the perfect music to get everyone ready for what was yet to come. The singer is known for his booming talent in the UK scene, and showed Houston that he is a lively performer. He performed tracks like “1st time,” “Right Here, for Now” and “NW3.” One of the singer’s well-known tracks include a collaboration with Dominic Fike titled “Stop Selling Her Drugs,” but wowed the crowd with his hit-single “Hell N Back.” Hearing Bakar’s voice was a majestic experience, and its safe to say that he gained a Houston fanbase after such a phenomenal performance.

Suprisingly, the final opener of the night was fellow well-known indie band Young the Giant, who performed at Houston’s 713 Music Hall a year prior for their ‘American Bollywood’ tour with Milky Chance. While Cage the Elephant served as the headliners, it definitely felt as if Young the Giant served as a co-headliner instead of the sporting their slated opening spot. The band started their performance with an exhilarating rendition of “Jungle Youth” from their album Home of the Strange, followed by “The Walk Home.” The crowd immediately lit up as the riff for “Cough Syrup” began to play, where everyone cheered and sang every lyric word for word. Lead singer Sameer Gadhia expressed gratitude as he told Houston: “Once our last tour ended, we were going to stop touring and record our next album. When Cage the Elephant asked us to join their tour, we couldn’t say no.” After the spiel, the band performed the track “Elsewhere” from Home of the Strange for the first time in six years.

Most recently, Young the Giant is celebrating the 10th anniversary of their sophomore album Mind Over Matter, and are set to release the deluxe anniversary edition of the album that contains unreleased tracks. To celebrate the anniversary, they performed “Mind Over Matter,” “Waves” and “It’s About Time.” As their set concluded, Young the Giant performed “Silvertongue” with an elongated intro, and ended their set with an engaging performance of “My Body.” The set was full of raw emotion, as each member worked to mesmerize the Houston crowd with their grooves. With starting off with underrated bops and gradually arriving to the point of performing their well-known hits, Young the Giant’s intricate performance never fails to disappoint.

The opening sets were a major highlight as each of them got the Houston crowd ready in their own way, making the time move fast as it was finally time for Cage the Elephant to take the stage. The last time Cage the Elephant performed in Houston was back in the Summer of 2019, as they performed with Beck and Spoon, so it was refreshing to see them return to the Woodlands venue. The lights dimmed and the band came out soon after, with lead singer Matt Schulz jumping all over the stage to their song “Broken Boy” from their album Social Cues. After an explosive opening number, Cage performed songs like “Crybaby,” “Spiderhead” and “Too Late to Say Goodbye,” where fans screamed the lyrics at the top of their lungs.

Matt Schulz was a man of little words, as he only stopped once to acknowledge the troubling times Houston faced after Hurricane Beryl wrecked havoc on the beloved city. It seemed like Cage the Elephant were on a mission to put on a great show to relieve the Houston crowd, and bring a great time to those who had been facing hardships after the brutal storm. The band performed more songs from their discography such as “Social Cues,” “Halo” and “Mess Around.” The set took a turn when they performed their melancholic track “Trouble,” but immediately revved up again with its sister song “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked.”

“Let me see those lights” exclaims Matt before starting to sing “Telescope,” and the Pavilion lit up as fans turned on their phone lights – some even turned on their actual lighters. The band ended their set with “Tokyo Smoke” and “House of Glass,” which garnered a less-exciting reaction. The guitar-riff echo and buzzing continued to play as the band left the stage for their encore, and soon returned to perform their signature hits “Shake Me Down” and “Cigarette Daydreams.” As this show marked a lot of fans’ first time seeing Cage the Elephant, it was a great feeling seeing their faces light up as their indie-kid dreams came true by hearing these songs live. It comes as no surprise that the band ended their Houston set with “Come a Little Closer,” where Schulz revealed he sang the entire show with broken ear monitor.

While the band was on tour to promote their latest album Neon Pill, Cage the Elephant only performed three songs from the album – “Good Time,” “Neon Pill” and “Rainbow.” Their set felt more like a “greatest hits” showcase, as they have such a massive catalog of songs to pick from. Regardless, the show was infused with hot flames and jaw-dropping stage pyrotechnics, showing the band’s testament to the genre of indie-rock. On top of outstanding opening performances, Cage the Elephant proved that they continue to be a force to be reckoned with.