Photos and review by: Jason Robey
CHARLOTTE, NC — Outside the Fillmore, a girl with an acoustic guitar sat on the street corner, playing “When it Rains It Pours,” one of Twiddle‘s most streamed songs. It echoed off the building loud enough that everyone could hear as they made their way into the venue. The perfect way to get into the spirit before the show.
Inside, the stage was set for the opening act, Charlotte’s own Of Good Nature. The popular band has toured extensively over the past several years, building up a fan base all over, but always bringing a crowd to a hometown show. Blending alternative rock with some reggae influence, the group played a 45 minute set, kicking off with a trio of fan favorites, “Feels Right,” “Now I Know,” and “Open Your Mind.” Closing out their 5-week tour with this homecoming, they debuted some new material alongside the well-known songs. Always an energetic and upbeat show, the band got the crowd nice and warmed up for the main act.
As the lights went down and Twiddle emerged on stage, the crowd erupted into an explosion of cheers, welcoming the opening tune, “The Mission.” Bassist Zdenek Gubb took vocal duty for the first song, trading off with guitarist Mihali Savoulidis throughout the evening. The light show danced with colors along with the rhythm and a sea of moving bodies filled the room. Each member of the band got their own chance to shine in the transcendental jams that sprouted from nearly every song.
As is typical in the jam band scene, the setlist is different every night, and could include anything from their five albums and more. Long time favorites like “Jamflowman” and “Doinkinbonk!!!” fit perfectly side by side with newer tunes like “Life Back Now,” from Every Last Leaf, released just two months ago. A 20-minute “Beethoven And Greene > Frankenfoote” gave every member a chance to shine in the spotlight with exploratory and inspired jamming, before closing the regular set. The band returned for a spellbinding encore of “Every Last Leaf II” before finally calling it a night and leaving the audience screaming for one more song. Check out tour dates on Twiddle’s Facebook page.
