(Writer: Tammie Eller)
(Photo via. Relix Live Stream)

Walking into Higher Ground on April 11th, we realized right away that this would be a night in with Twiddle like we have never experienced — and we were right. Starting with the stage setup, constructed of some things directly out of a few of the band member’s living rooms, we knew we were in for an intimate treat. Now, it’s easy to think that without all the electronic extras, that musically, a few things might be missing for any band that plays a set unplugged. We have all heard those horribly disappointing sets with artists who simply don’t sound the same without all the help.

As soon as the band kicked things off with “Enter” and segued into “Orlandos,” though, we quickly realized that even without all the bells and whistles, we weren’t losing anything — quite the opposite. Instead of hearing what wasn’t there, the band filled in those spaces with raw emotion, unlike anything we have heard from them before.

In addition to the intense music, in between each song, the band member responsible for writing it told the story about how each track came about.By the end of the night, we had gotten over two hours of Twiddle that were raw, intimate, and exciting beyond measure. With Ryan Dempsey on a baby grand, Mihali Savoulidis on lead guitar, Brook Jordan on drums, and Zdenek Gubb on bass the emotion in each song was almost more than most of us could endure.

It was like by unplugging their instruments, Twiddle gave its fans an inside look at how truly, deeply, and intimately talented each member actually is — and everyone in attendance felt deeply grateful for what felt like a peek behind the curtain. Of course, we can’t very well talk about an intimate night in with Twiddle without mentioning the band’s recent jams. Even unplugged, Twiddle seems to have doubled down lately on their jam skills and the fans have taken notice. On Thursday, there was an especially delicious jam that accompanied “Cabbage Face” that left many of us breathless and weeping.

One thing is certain, Twiddle continues to impress. Both the band member’s songwriting skills as well as their ability to melt our faces with new, raw, delicious, and delightful jams with each set will carry this band as far as they care to go.

Setlist:

Enter>Orlandos, Caterpillar, Jamflowman, Lost in the Cold, Second Wind, Beethoven and Greene, Doinkinbonk!!!, Cabbage face, The Machine, Milk, River Drift