Album: Cage the Elephant
If memory serves, I've now posted for two months on this blog and claimed that at least half of it was about music. And somehow, someway, I've posted for two months without once mentioning Tidball's. It could have probably been its own header in my "Thankful . . ." post. For those of you unfamiliar, Tidball's is a bar in Bowling Green, Kentucky, providing Western Kentucky University's youth and Bowling Green's most loyal with an escape from everyday life. It was the place you could find me most nights of the week my last year and a half of college, from the time the door was first unlocked around 9:07 to the time the place locked back up at 2:13. It's where I met Jarvis and a host of other people that I still consider great friends to this day, made the words "Half a mile from the county fair" my music version of Pavlov's bell, and shaped my ability to give every type of music a chance to impress me. It's where, through the haze of Camel Special Lights, that I discovered just how much people truly cared about music and just how much fun it could be if you gathered all of these people in one place. It humbled me and inspired me all at once. Tidball's is truly the only live music venue in Bowling Green. Other places may have an occasional concert or a string of cover bands, but Tidball's brings something new to the stage damn-near six nights a week. And while our cover band was lucky enough to grace the stage a few handfuls of times, it is the original artists that have put the place on the map and honed their sound and their fanbase on a stage that stands only about eight inches above the crowd and gives you no choice but to be a part of the experience. I'm dedicating the next few posts of this Discover 365 series to Tidball's and the music that has come out of it since that special night in June of 2005 that we first ventured in to hear a Nashville band whose album isn't set to be introduced on this countdown until November or December. Some would even say "it's the Babylon of the Bible belt":
The first album with Tidball's roots is probably the most famous: Cage the Elephant's self-titled debut. This band got big in Bowling Green just as our college years peaked so we go as far back as when they were called Perfect Confusion. With unmatched energy and a loyal fanbase, Cage grew into a presence in Bowling Green and the surrounding area enough to get noticed. Taking the England-first route much like Kings of Leon, they hopped the pond, got big, and came back just in time to be refreshing. Do you know how surreal it is to be reading Rolling Stone and see a feature or photo shoot about a group of guys that your own band used to share space on cheap live music flyers with? In addition to the radio hit, "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked," check out the Chili Peppers-like track, "Lotus", and the I'm-smarter-than-I-look-and-act' "In One Ear."
Plus they never forget where they come from:
Year Released: 2009
# of Tracks: 11
Label: RCA / Jive
Best Lyric: "So for the critics who despise us, go ahead and criticize; It's your tyranny that drives us, adds the fire to our flames" - In One Ear
Best Track: "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked" - It got played out pretty bad, but I can't wait to hear it years from now and be able to remember how awesome it was the first time it came on my radio
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