Old Dominion Brings Festive 'Happy Endings' To Amsoil Arena

Old Dominion wrapped up their 2018 tour dates with a festively-themed show in front of a nearly sold-out crowd at Amsoil Arena in Duluth on Saturday night. The crew and some members of all three musical acts sported Christmas-themed attire that included an elf-clad drummer for opening act High Valley, Michael Ray sporting a "It's the most wonderful time for a beer" ugly Christmas sweater, and Old Dominion lead singer Matthew Ramsey wearing a lit Christmas lights necklace for a time with Santa even joining the band on stage during their encore.

Canadian duo High Valley opened the evening with the presence and feel of a headlining act, warming up the crowd with a set that included their two big U.S. hits "She's With Me" and "Make You Mine". Also in the mix were songs that have charted well in Canada like "Dear Life" and "I Be U Be", as well as a bluegrass-tinged cover of the pop hit "Shut Up And Dance" by Walk The Moon.

Florida crooner Michael Ray and his band all donned Christmas sweaters as they hit the stage with their opening number "Fan Girl". Ray worked the crowd from the catwalk through much of his set, singing his hits "Kiss You In The Morning", "Get To You", and "Think A Little Less" and a fan-favorite cover of Tim McGraw's "I Like It, I Love It".

Old Dominion closed the evening with a parade of hits and crowd sing-alongs that opened with "Song For Another Time", and included "Beer Can In A Truck Bed", "Not Everything's About You", "Written In The Sand", "Said Nobody", and "Hotel Key". The band headed to the end of the catwalk with their guitars and a Christmas tree for an acoustic set that included "Still Writing Songs About You" and "Stars In The City", before transitioning to a song Matthew Ramsey explained was one of their favorites. Ramsey explained "If there's one song we brought with us for you, it's this one", before breaking into their hit "No Such Thing As A Broken Heart" off their album Happy Endings.

During the set, Ramsey spent time thanking Duluth and Minnesota for being so supportive of the band since they hit the scene and expressing gratitude for the warm reception as they ended the year with the stop at Amsoil Arena.

The band completed the night with a series of songs worthy of crowd sing-alongs that included "Nowhere Fast", "Break Up With Him", and an encore set that spanned the group's career including 2014's "Dirt On A Road", "Shoe Shopping" off Happy Endings, and ending the night with their hit "Snapback" off their 2015 album Meat and Candy.