Matt Shultz Talks Dan Auerbach, Depression On Cage the Elephant's 'Tell Me I'm Pretty'

Kentucky outfit Cage the Elephant dropped their fourth studio album, Tell Me I'm Pretty, last week with the help of album producer Dan Auerbach, who assisted the group with executing a nostalgic 1960s rock theme. Frontman Matt Shultz admits that the 10-track record, although heavily influenced by classic rock groups, was crafted based around a heavy trifecta of meditation, darkness and depression.

Schulz recently offered insight on the group's sound taking new direction and what the process of working with the Black Keys and Arcs member was like. When questioned about the decision to focus on throwback rock, Schulz explained, "I had an incredible opportunity to play a Bonnaroo Superjam last year with [Doors guitarist] Robby Krieger. We did a Doors song, and I realized that classic sound was thing that I wanted to hear. It felt very modern," he told Entertainment Weekly.

At one point, Schulz, his brother Brad, Jared Champion, Daniel Tichenor and Nick Bockrath felt they had to stay true to a certain sound, but after exploring new avenues with their third, Grammy-nominated 2013 album Melophobia, the group wanted to continue their journey traveling through new genres. "I've always been in love with great songwriting," Shultz admits in the album trailer below.

Tell Me I'm Pretty largely zeros in on the theme of depression, which directly reflects the frontman and his own personal issues. "I suffer from a little depression at different times and more often than not, I find myself in this place where I feel impending doom - it's always lingering around the corner. Maybe I fixated on it and wrote a lot about it on this record," the singer revealed.

Ahead of the album's release, the goup dropped a funky Outkast-inspired track "Mess Around," along with "Trouble" and the blues-ridden "Too Late to Say Goodbye." Ever since the collaboration, Cage the Elephant have praised Auerbach for his raw talent and ability to craft an album.

"We'd become pretty good friends over the years. During our last tour with [The Black Keys], we showed him a couple songs. We wanted a sound that was raw with a classic atmosphere, and he's at the forefront of that sound. Right after [we showed him the songs], I got a text from him: "Dude, I'm making your next record!"

Tell Me I'm Pretty saw its debut on Dec. 18 2015 and is currently available for purchase.

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Cage The Elephant