DISCLAIMER: The following article is strictly the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the consensus of Factory Records, LLC.
The RSD Essential series is truly one of the best ways for novice collectors to start honing their craft. If
you see the ‘RSD Essential’ sticker on any record it means exactly that. That it is believed that a
particular album is an ‘essential’ to have in any collection, big or small.
Such an album which has been labeled an ‘RSD Essential’ is the always accessible but forever influential ‘Melophobia’. This is the third
studio album by the popular alternative rock group, Cage The Elephant. However, to truly understand why this album is so great, we have to transport to the origin of the band itself.
The biggest contribution to the world of indie and alternative rock would be none other than music festival headliners and Grammy winners – Cage The Elephant. Consistantly one of the most relevant bands of the genre since the group launched their self-titled solo release in 2008.
That album would spawn four singles and go platinum, selling over one million copies in the United
States. However, on a personal level, the group’s third album ‘Melophobia’ is not only their best, but it’s
truly one of the albums that most encompass the landscape of the indie rock scene of the 2010s.
Bands like Cage The Elephant dominated alternative rock radio at this point and still do to this day.
The group would already have phenomenal success up until this point with their debut, self-titled album.
Released in 2008 that album would feature the wildly popular single ‘Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked which
would climb to number 3 on the Billboard Alternative Songs charts. However, in their 2013 attempt,
Melophobia would be the title that launched the group into the stratosphere.
As soon as the first track, ‘Spiderhead’ plays, you know that you are in for something truly special as the grunge-inspired tones and
swagger that accompanies it truly lets you know that you are in for pure, unfettered rock and roll.
When I covered Cage The Elephant on assignment in the mid-2010s, frontman Matt Shultz had not only
an aura about him that emphasized ‘cool, confident frontman’, but he was someone who knew how to
leave audience members breathless at each high-octane show, especially if it’s at an indoor venue like
Terminal 5 in New York, will usually see the singer climbing scaffolding and stage diving – all for the
enjoyment of the crowd that paid to see the band.
In retrospect, this album is truly a love-letter to the 2010s. ‘Come A Little Closer’, the group’s first single off of the record would bring balance sonically to its overall flow following the high-octane opening track. Of course, ‘Come A Little Closer’ would become a signature hit for the group on the concert and festival scene for years to come after Melophobia’s release. It is no surprise to see why the album is labeled as an ‘RSD Essentitial’ because if you were young and youthful during this time-period
then there is little doubt ‘Melophobia’ played a role in the soundtrack of your life.
Factory Records and RSD 2023 are pleased to offer essential titles such as these, whether it’s an older
legacy title like ‘Blue’ by Joni Mitchell or the aforementioned ‘Melophobia which has since become a
modern classic. You can purchase these great titles now over at FactoryRecords.com
