The Bolts Vs. Cage the Elephant

posted in: Features • Rock

Rock and roll has had a profound impact on the culturally history of the United States. Beginning in the 1950s with artists like Elvis Presley, rock music has always been a symbol for youthful rebellion. From the psychedelic rock of the ’60s, to glam rock in the ’70s, to hair metal in the ’80s, to grunge in the ’90s, each new generation of kids latches on to a new variation that represents their time and experiences. And while all the various sub-genres of rock have their differences, they all share a few basic similarities: loud guitars, powerful drum beats, booming bass and in-your-face riffs. While it may seem like rock has taken a backseat in the music mainstream to pop and country, there are still successful bands out there keeping the rock and roll tradition alive. One of those bands is Cage the Elephant, who also happen to be one of OurStage’s biggest success stories. This week’s edition of Vs. matches them up against another great up-and-coming rock band on OurStage that you may not know about yet, The Bolts.

 
What makes the Bolts similar to Cage the Elephant is that they both write hard rock songs with a pop sensibility. Like Cage the Elephant, The Bolts have a penchant for writing hard yet melodic riffs that are extremely catchy. One listen to their song “Walk Away” makes this perfectly obvious. The song opens with a hard biting guitar riff that blasts you in the face on your first listen, but by the end of the song you’ll be humming it back to yourself. It really is that catchy. The Bolts trade off vocal duties between four out of the five members of the band, which allows for versatility as well as great vocal harmonizations, which you can hear on the chorus of “Walk Away.” While Cage the Elephant’s lead singer is known for his distinct, nasally voice, the singers in the Bolts have smoother voices with greater range. They also show off their instrumental skill with a roaring guitar solo about halfway through the song.

“Leaving You” is another song that shows The Bolts’ ability to craft catchy rock riffs. This song is more upbeat and is driven by the rhythm section of bass and drums. The rhythm section creates a dance beat that provides a backbone for the melodic guitar riffs. In fact, if you compare this song to the Cage the Elephant song “Lotus,” you can hear that the verses of both songs share a very similar drum groove. Much like “Walk Away,” the guitarists on “Leaving You” play hard hitting, over-driven guitar riffs that are incredibly catchy. The Bolts once again utilize their multitude of singers to great effect here. The verses feature call and response vocal lines from two of the singers, while the chorus uses vocal harmonizations of wordless melodies in a way that can best be described as a hard rock Beach Boys effect.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that The Bolts take inspiration from a number of artists in rock history, and they tend to show more varied influences in their songs than Cage the Elephant. Their diverse mix of styles is best exemplified in “Play the Music”. With a back beat inspired by late ’70s disco, this song shows an influence from the new wave scene of the ’70s and ’80s. The song opens with a synthesizer melody and uses this melody to set the tone for the rest of the song. However, the song doesn’t abandon the guitars; there is still plenty of great riffs to be heard here. What makes the song great is that they can integrate the different instruments and sounds together to make a truly unique song. The Bolts are proving that rock and roll is an art form that draws inspiration from the past, but at the same time continues to move forward and push boundaries.

You can buy music from The Bolts on iTunes.

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