Articles and Photos by: Megan Niger

Following the release of their new album, Down In Heaven, Twin Peaks decided to hit the road touring and make a stop in the quiet little town of Northampton, MA this past Saturday. Fellow Chicago artist, Jimmy Whispers, and band, Ne Hi, joined them on the road as well.

By the time the show was scheduled to start, the room consisted of maybe twenty people, half of them sitting around near the bar. Jimmy Whispers warmed up the small, but growing crowd with his solo singing act accompanied with humor. He kept everyone entertained as he moved around the stage, climbed on top of the speakers and even left the room with the mic. At one point, an audience member climbed on stage and they shared a brief hug before he told the boy to get off of his stage, (somewhat) jokingly. At another point, he told the audience he was going to play his strip song. He then proceeded to sing us this song and actually begin stripping. His act was one I surely will not forget.

After Jimmy, Ne Hi took the stage and pumped the crowd full of energy. Their indie rock sound got the now larger audience head banging in preparation for the main act. By the time their set was complete, everyone in the room was on their feet and jamming out.

The crowd had grown substantially as Twin Peaks started preparing the stage for their set. I was surprised to find out that a lot of people there, including myself, had driven more than an hour just to see them play. It was very clear that the group was a dedicated bunch.

The boys kicked of the show with a throwback to 2013, “Stand in the Sand”. There was not one person in the entire room that wasn’t yelling the words back at them at the top of they lungs. By the third song, the whole crowd had become a mosh pit. Seeing as there was no photo pit, I was thrusted into the madness as well. However, I did manage to keep my camera out of harms way and flying limbs.

The setlist continued on, playing favorites from previous albums as well as their newly released album. Despite it only being out for just over a week, the crowd impressively seemed to know most of the lyrics. When the show came to an end, the rowdy crowd began chanting for an encore and would not take no for an answer. Of course, the boys came back on stage and gave them what they wanted; one more song and a few more minutes to rock and roll.