Glass Animals Turns The Armory Into A Sold Out Pool Party

While many people were hitting the bars to celebrate Saint Patrick’s day in the Twin Cities, thousands of musician fans flooded to The Armory for their own celebration. Although there was no green beer and only a handful of people wearing green, the mood in the packed venue was beyond festive. 

Kicking the night off as the only opening act on the show, Sad Night Dynamite promptly took the stage at 7:30 and jumped into their half-hour set that seemed to be a love it or hate it kind of set for the excited constantly growing audience. Although I am still on the fence as to whether I loved it or hated it, there’s no denying that this band has a super cool sound. It’s a little hip-hop, a little lo-fi, a little boy band, and a whole lot of infectious beats. It’s an interesting sound that clearly wouldn’t be for everyone but you have to admit that they are doing something nobody else is which made their set seem to fly by for me. Overall, I felt their stage presence was just lacking something at times. With two vocalists to fill up the stage and their overall super unique sound, I guess I was just expecting a more explosive live show. That being said, I won’t say that they weren’t trying, because they were and they definitely had hooked some people in the audience in the best way possible.

The changeover between Sad Night Dynamite and the headliner of the night, Glass Animals, was already quick but just trying to catch everything that was on the stage made it even quicker. From the screen that looked like an old school computer screen showing that godforsaken loading bar with the countdown going from 2 minutes to 2 years in the blink of an eye to the basketball hoop, pyramid, pool sign, palm trees, balloons– it was a scattered stage and even with the thirty minutes of downtime between bands, I felt like I really didn’t get to catch everything. Then, just like back in the day, the countdown somehow went from 38 days to 2 minutes and started the countdown and it didn’t take the crowd long to catch on. There was a tense moment of silence until the crowd started cheering as the countdown, well, counted down, and then, a roar of applause as the “computer screen” loaded and welcomed Minneapolis to the party.

Glass Animals is not a new band in any way but they are one of those bands that has somehow stayed a bit under my radar. I don’t know how though. Their sound is super fresh and cool and their live show, as I would find out on Thursday night, is impressive to put it lightly. Since 2010, this British rock band has been doing their own thing and turning heads on the way. With only three albums out and the fact that I feel like this band is one of those bands where you know the music but maybe not the name, I was a bit surprised with how the show sold-out and how excited people were but it all made sense the second the band jumped into their fifteen song set.

Remember all of those things I mentioned that were on the stage, well they were all lined with neon lights which turned on as soon as the band took the stage. To say that I was completely overstimulated visually would be an understatement but I loved the flair it gave to the show. Although it was hard to ignore the band (more on that later0, I found myself constantly getting distracted by all of the blinking lights and just trying not to miss a single element of their stage set-up. Not only was it fun to watch the bright lights as they blinked on and off, but I also loved the very chill and relaxed vibe they gave the entire venue. Even though The Armory is a huge and deep building, regardless of where you were standing, you got the full effect of all of these small elements on stage due to the lights and I loved that.

It wasn’t just the stage decorations that were eye-catching, I don’t even know where to begin with vocalist Dave Bayley. Although fairly petite in stature, there was something larger than life about him as he danced and sang his way through the set. From exaggerated dance moves to an infectious smile that, although could not be seen all the way in the back of the Armory, could be felt throughout the venue, there was just something so electrifying about his stage presence that I could stand and watch for hours on end night after night. Don’t get me wrong, the rest of the band killed it, but Dave was constantly front and center stealing the spotlight throughout the evening.

I’ll admit, musically, Glass Animals isn’t quite for me. Their indie-rock vibe is great and solid but it’s just something that has always felt a bit like background music for me. There was nothing background about the music they were putting out on Thursday night. A little clubby and more beat-centric, their music matched the flashing lights in a perfect way that had even me bopping around a bit. Although I only knew a song or two from their setlist, the entire audience was treating every song like it was their favorite which was just the icing on the cake. Sure, I wasn’t singing along to every song like those around me but seeing their excitement mixed with everything else going on– Thursday night was a hell of a show and Glass Animals just gained a new fan.