Named for their home state of Virginia, Old Dominion first made their C2C debut back in 2018, winning over audiences with their smart songwriting and fusion of pop, rock and country sounds. They last visited these shores for their headline tour all the way back in 2019, in support of their self-titled third album, and have since released two more – ‘Time, Tequila And Therapy’ in 2021, and last year’s ‘Memory Lane’. Last night, they made their long-awaited return to the UK to close C2C 2024 as part of their No Bad Vibes Tour, having previously been due to headline the 2020 festival before the pandemic got in the way.
After an opening sequence which featured the words ‘We are Old Dominion’ flashing up on screen increasingly rapidly, the quintet arrived on stage to huge cheers and applause before bursting into ‘Make It Sweet’ from their third album. Right from the off that set the tempo for the rest of the evening, with its bright playful melody and celebratory lyrics that got the whole of the O2 singing along straight away. You could tell the guys were having an absolute whale of a time and the crowd was absolutely feeding off it, as made clear by their thunderous whoops and clapping as the song drew to a close.
The next 90 minutes were a party from start to finish, as Old Dominion packed their set with songs from across their album. From breakup-song-with-a-twist ‘Never Be Sorry’ to the slinky, saucy ‘Midnight Mess Around’, via the funky groove of ‘Snapback’, the bouncy bass of ‘Hotel Key’ and the mellow ‘Song For Another Time’ that had the crowd swaying along, they really offered something for everyone and kept the energy high throughout. I also loved that they mixed things up on several songs, including the rockier intro of ‘Memory Lane’, the acapella opening of ‘One Man Band’ and a section on ‘Written In The Sand’ which saw Matthew almost rapping over an incredible riff from Brad Tursi. Speaking of Brad, his guitar playing was a big highlight throughout, particularly the Zeppelin-esque intro on ‘Save It For A Rainy Day’ which he and Matthew co-wrote for Kenny Chesney. I think he’s one of the best – and certainly the most underrated – guitarists in Nashville, and his performance was a huge part of why everything worked so seamlessly (in the main set at least – more on that later).
One thing which really stood out to me was just how much fun the band have performing together. Whether it was Matthew pointing at bassist Geoff Sprung during ‘Break Up With Him’ – to raucous laughter from the crowd – or having the time of his life playing his glockenspiel riff during ‘No Hard Feelings’, it was clear they were enjoying being up on stage and playing in front of a crowd that was loving it just as much as they were. That came through particularly strongly in their performance of JJ Cale’s ‘Cocaine’, which saw them bring out Brothers Osborne and Elle King and featured a fantastic guitar riff-off between Brad and John Osborne before all eight of them snapped a photo together and Matthew cracked jokes about how people think they’re the same band. However, it was also clear that they’re hugely grateful for the support of the UK audiences, as evidenced in a heartfelt speech from Matthew before he encouraged the crowd to sing as loudly as possible ‘for the person who needs it’ on the uplifting ‘No Such Thing As A Broken Heart’.
After finishing their main set with ‘My Heart Is A Bar’, which saw all five band members crowded round a microphone for the acapella finale, the group returned to the stage for their encore amid raucous applause from the crowd. Due to some technical difficulties, they kicked off their encore with an acoustic version of ‘Nowhere Fast’ that they struggled to get through for laughing. Despite the setback, they took it all in their stride – as well as delivering a great performance of the song – and I think it’s a moment that will live long in C2C memory for its brilliant chaos. With everything back up and running, they closed with ‘I Was On A Boat That Day’, a perfect slice of sunshine that had the whole crowd singing along and practically took the roof off the O2!
At the start of the set, lead singer Matthew Ramsey pledged “we came here to fill this room with joy” and that pretty much summed up Old Dominion’s entire performance last night. They really were the perfect Sunday night headliners – full of infectious positivity and with a sunny uptempo setlist that lifted everyone’s spirits, as well as being absolutely tight musicially and showing how talented they are as songwriters to boot. As they left the stage, Matthew promised “we’re coming back, and it definitely won’t be as long this time”. Based on last night’s performance, that return trip can’t come soon enough!
Set list: 1. Make It Sweet 2. No Hard Feelings 3. Never Be Sorry 4. Break Up With Him 5. Midnight Mess Around 6. No Such Thing As A Broken Heart 7. Can’t Break Up Now 8. Written In The Sand 9. Snapback 10. Hotel Key 11. Cocaine (JJ Cale cover) (with Brothers Osborne and Elle King) 12. Memory Lane 13. One Man Band 14. Song For Another Time 15. Save It For A Rainy Day (made famous by Kenny Chesney) 16. My Heart Is A Bar Encore: 17. Nowhere Fast 18. I Was On A Boat That Day Performance date: 10th March 2024
