Cage The Elephant, Concorde 2, Brighton, Nov 4

4:29pm Monday 3rd November 2008

It's no surprise that Cage The Elephant’s eponymous debut album harks back to music’s glory days, when you realise some of the band only discovered punk and rock ’n’ roll relatively recently.

Kentucky-based brothers Brad and Matt Schultz spent most of their formative years listening to Christian rock, largely due to the influence of their parents.

“I think our first album is just where we were musically then,” says Matt. “We recorded it two and a half years ago, when we were still discovering new music. It did have an effect on us, in as much as that music was still fresh to us.”

In interviews the brothers have told stories about Green Day albums being snapped in front of their eyes and a borrowed Pearl Jam album returned to its owner after it was found to mention suicide in its lyrics.

The teenage brothers’ first introduction to rock ’n’ roll couldn’t have come from two better sources – a tape of Jimi Hendrix live at Woodstock and a Bob Dylan album.

“We just went from there,” says Matt. “Lately we are into Pixies, Pavement, Gang Of Four, XTC, The Ramones and The Stooges.”

Not that Cage The Elephant is a band that just looks back. Matt is keen to list a whole wealth of new bands he is into, including Morning Teleportation, The Invisible Hand, home-town heroes Sleeper Agent, and former support acts Screaming Tea Party and Bleached Whale.

“You are always influenced by what you listen to. We are a product of our environment,” he says.

“When we go back into the studio at the end of December/beginning of January to record our second album it is definitely going to be very different. We are not a band that will keep our feet in one place.”

Anyone who has seen Cage The Elephant live will testify to that.

The band, formed from Brad and Matt’s high school friends, was one of the highlights of this May’s The Great Escape festival.

Throughout their Audio show Matt climbed onto the barrier and hung off a mirror ball to get closer to his audience.

They have been building a reputation for themselves nationally with a series of great support slots with the likes of Queens Of The Stone Age, Foals and The Pigeon Detectives.

“We have always wanted to give a good live show,” says Matt.

“When I listen to music I want to move around and jump about, so when I make music I want that too.”

Now their focus is on following up the first album, something that shouldn’t take long with at least four songwriters in the five-strong band.

“Everyone contributes,” says Matt. “I don’t know if any one of us are prolific writers, but between us we find enough material.”