Cage the Elephant – The Armory – Minneapolis, MN – October 16th, 2025

Cage the Elephant (with Vlad Holiday and hey, nothing) at the Armory in Minneapolis, MN – Thursday, October 16, 2025

REVIEW by Catherine Zons, Photos by Jim Zons

My night at the Armory was full of vibrant sound, beautiful lights, and incredible atmosphere. A steady fog was rolling off the stage, and the historic venue’s high-ceiling concert hall was buzzing with excitement well before the lights turned off.

The night began with an all-too-short set by Vlad Holiday, a Romanian-American singer/songwriter from Bucharest, Romania. His sound, a blend of lo-fi, psychedelic rock, jazz, bedroom and dream pop, was just as hazy as the stage. His crooning vocals and soft guitar seemed to hang in the air like smoke, and the audience was totally transfixed by his presence. His work often discusses the themes of heartbreak and longing, and I certainly found myself growing wistful as the set went on. He delivered fan favorites like “So Damn Into You” and “Phonograph,” inviting the crowd to light up their phones and dance with him. It was an unexpectedly beautiful experience, and the perfect introduction to the type of evening we were going to have at the Armory that night.

hey, nothing began their set after a brief intermission. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, the duo began releasing songs in 2021, but have been making music together since they were in middle school. Each playing guitar and singing, hey, nothing’s Tyler Mabry and Harlow Phillips traverse difficult topics with cutting lyrics and cathartic witticism. Their sound, self-described as “folk emo,” is emotional, raw, and vulnerable–and I’m not sure I’ve ever smiled or laughed harder during a concert as I did during theirs. Between powerfully sensitive tracks like “Too Drunk to Drive” and “Maine,” Mabry and Phillips were constantly cracking jokes and engaging with the audience. When introducing a beautiful song about overcoming struggle called “Black Bear,” Phillips asked about “bears” and then clarified that they meant “rather fat hairy gay men” and not the animal. The crowd cheered raucously at this. Phillips also invited the crowd to “hit their best boogie” during “Too Drunk to Drive”–and we all happily obliged.

The duo as a live act actually consisted of four members: joining Mabry and Phillips on tour are producer Thomas Trautwein (bass and vocals) as well as Karmen Smith (drums.) The fullness of the sound was so fantastic, and the chemistry between all four performers was incredible. Phillips and Mabry took time between songs to marvel at the size of the crowd as well as intently express gratitude to us all for coming early. It was really cool to hear and see their excitement as they played; hey, nothing really turned their performance into a party, and I haven’t been able to get their songs “Sick Dogs” or “Hitchhiking” out of my head since!

Finally, the main event: Cage the Elephant. The crowd went wild as lead singer Matt Shultz took the stage and immediately jumped four feet in the air. The band, formed in Kentucky in 2006, consists of Shultz, as well as brother and rhythm guitarist Brad Shultz, Nick Bockrath (lead guitar), Matthan Minster (keyboards, guitar), Daniel Tichenor (bass), and Jared Champion (drums). Influenced by everything from blues, to punk, to funk, to alt rock, Cage’s sound is a unique blend that struggles to be defined by strict genres. They began with “Broken Boy,” a sharp track from their 2019 album Social Cues that discusses isolation and feelings of alienation. 

Cage’s setlist made pit stops at most of their major albums, wandering two decades of fan favorites like “Telescope,” “Cold Cold Cold,” “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked,” and “Neon Pill.” With a stage washed in bright red and blue fog, the performance spoke visually almost as strongly as it did audially. The pyrotechnics were intense and extremely song-specific, and I felt completely engaged, even though I was sitting at the very back of the venue. Cage the Elephant ended with an encore of two of their biggest hits, “Cigarette Daydreams” and “Come a Little Closer.” Overall, it was an incredible experience to hear some of my favorite tracks live (I loved “Spiderhead!”). I found myself singing along to almost every song, and smiling at them all.