PHOTOS + REVIEW — Cage the Elephant 2025 ⋆ Shows I Go To | 🎤 Florida Concerts, Festivals, & Giveaways

PHOTOS + REVIEW — Cage the Elephant 2025

Cage The Elephant • Dexter and the moon Rocks• Girl Tones • September 17, 2025 • The Baycare Sound — Clearwater, FL • Photos by Leo Lobo – https://www.instagram.com/lsquaredpics/

CAGE THE ELEPHANT LIVE REVIEW

Cage The Elephant, Dexter and the moon Rocks, Girl Tones | September 17, 2025 | The Baycare Sound, Clearwater, FL • Review by Leo Lobo

It has been six long years, but finally, Cage the Elephant has made their return to Florida. At 5:30 on Wednesday, September 17th we arrived at The Baycare Sound in Clearwater. The sunset was glowing as we walked up to the gorgeous venue overlooking the Clearwater Intracoastal Waterway. Although it was a relatively early start time, people from all walks of life were there and ready for the long awaited return. The 97X Next Big Thing Legends are the ones to thank for bringing the band here, even their previous time in Florida was because of them! The 97X is a hit radio station broadcasting alternative and new music to the Tampa Bay area, and not only are they good at playing the hits, they know how to choose a lineup! The entire night was banger after banger, even during the preshow waiting moments where they projected on the screen a song from the artists that have performed at the venue prior! They were even choosing random people during the preshow to go back and meet the first opener Girltones! Sadly I did not get chosen but I would’ve loved to because holy crap did they put on a show! Although they were the first opener I could’ve believed that they were the main set. The two sisters are from a small town in rural Kentucky but that does nothing to stop their huge energy. They stepped out and main singer Kenzie Crowe knew exactly what she wanted from the crowd and she made it happen, while the drummer Laila doesn’t just support the melody she shapes the whole direction. They got the crowd screaming back with them and moving around in the Florida heat, needless to say Girltones knew how to set the tone for the night, and it was only getting started. With little time to recover, next up was Dexter and the Moonrocks. Their sound to me is like spending an afternoon with my dad, in the best way. Their music carries the tones of the dad rock legends that came before them with a modern twist of grunge, and they fit perfectly on the night’s lineup. The stage was set with a drumkit with uppercase spray painted lettering on the main drum saying “FUCK” and the crowd knew that it was yet again, a sick opener. They said at the beginning of the night, that they were aware it was a weeknight so with a pretty early start time, the sets were going by quick and changeovers were going by the fastest I’ve ever seen at an amphitheater show; or maybe time just flies when all the bands are playing bangers after bangers. So after an action packed set from Dexter, where they ended their set with yelling at the crowd to open up the pit, and then teaching the crowd what opening the pit and moshing was, it was time for the main event. At 8:30 it began, the band mate slowly filtered out, all with an orangy fire glow from the lighting and things got real fiery when the beat dropped to their opening song “Broken Boy” and 6 fire canisters shot up in front of the band, it was so hot me and the security guard joked about it burning off our hair later. After a hot start they didn’t slow down with playing fan favorites early in the set like “Spiderhead” and “Too Late to Say Goodbye”. The lead singer of the band Matt Shultz was born for the stage and is constantly giving 100%. I have never seen an artist move around and dance as much as him, from jumps as tall as the mic stand to running up and down the stage, I still can’t believe how he wasn’t out of breath and managed to sing just as good, if not better then straight from the studio. I’m personally a pretty big Cage fan and still I forgot just how good their songs are and how many of them I have known for years, including iconic songs like “Cigarette Daydreams” and “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked”. All around the energy the band carries is incredible and by far one of the best performances I have seen in a while. I have to say a huge thanks to 97X Alternative for putting on such an awesome night and for bringing this band back to Florida, from the way everyone was dancing and singing along from the pit to the lawn, I can tell that we missed them. I even saw quite a few babies and kids there (thankfully with ear protection) so the next generation of Cage enjoyers were being shaped and I know I’m ready to see them back in Florida again.