Tag: Ryan Dempsey

The Werk Out Music and Arts Festival Exceeds Expectations

The 7^th annual Werk Out Music and Arts Festival at Legend Valley Music Venue and Campground was stacked for success with a powerhouse line-up.

Taking place in Thornville, Ohio, August 4-6, it was more than just the music that fueled the success of this year’s festival. Anchored by moving tributes in honor of former Werks’ keyboardist Norman Dimitrouleas, as well a plethora of artist sit-ins and breakout performances, this year’s festival was marked with emotion and surprises.

The Werk Out’s biggest surprise literally fell on STS9 drummer Zach Velmer, when a female fan managed to bypass festival security. Once onstage, the fan made Werk Out history by attempting a trust fall onto Velmer and his kit. STS9 left the stage to regroup and returned for a high energy second set that closed out the Main Stage on Friday Night.

Friday afternoon was highlighted by the Big Damn Jam’s performance of the Beatles’ classic album Abbey Road. The performance was dedicated to Dimitrouleas, who passed earlier this year. As a member of Big Damn Jam, Dimitrouleas always wanted to perform the album. After his passing, BDJ decided to honor him posthumously with the performance at this year’s Werk Out Music Festival.

The Abbey Road set included a rotating cast of musicians most notably Dino Dimitrouleas (The Werks), Todd Stoop, Alex Delk (Octopus’ Garden), Marcus Cornwell (The Vibe) and Justin Robb (Litz) as well almost a dozen other musicians throughout the afternoon set. Most of the musicians participating had played with Dimitrouleas in various projects over the year. During the set, fabric flowers fashioned from Dimitrouleas’ old shirts were passed out in his honor. Fans and musicians wore them on hats, backpacks and various pieces of clothing throughout the rest of the weekend.

The tributes to Dimitrouleas continued throughout the weekend including The Werks’ Saturday night encore with a dedicated performance of “Carry Me Back Home.”

“I’ve never been so emotionally touched by a musical performance as I was during the Werks encore tribute to Norman on Saturday night,” said Zachary Burns of Grand Rapids, MI. “Everything from the crowd chanting ‘DINO! DINO! DINO!’, to Dino’s speech before the song starting, to seemingly every member and a good portion of the crowd crying during ‘Carry Me Back Home.’ That was the definition of being happy and sad at the same time.”

The Werk Out’s most talked about performance came in the form of the Twerkapod “Tribute to the 90s.” Featuring members of Twiddle, The Werks, and Dopapod, the Friday night late night set was packed with a mix of obvious choices (Green Day, Blink 182, Sublime, Nirvana, Rage Against the Machine) and stunning surprises (Britney Spears, Hanson and TLC). Highlighted performances from the set included “Gangsta’s Paradise” which featured a perfect reproduction of the song’s ending choral arrangement and Twerkapod’s word perfect performance of TLC’s “Waterfalls.”

Fans of The Werks weren’t in agreement on which of the weekends multiple sets were the band’s best. Most found that each of the weekend’s set contributed a different experience for the weekend.

“I really enjoyed the first Werks set on Thursday,” noted Tyler Raymond of Michigan. “I’ve seen the Werks more than any other band and the sound and production was top notch from them. The way the light show was coordinated with the band was seriously next level. You could really tell that they were putting the shows on for us and that the guys really love us.”

Dino Dimitrouleas, currently on a hiatus from bass duties with The Werks, joined his band mates on several occasions for sit-ins throughout the weekend starting Friday night. “When Dino came on stage in the tent everyone was so happy” Raymond told NYS Music, “Definitely a moment to always remember.”

Vermont based quartet Twiddle continued to create a buzz about their unique brand of jam. Raymond also noted that the band’s Saturday night sunset performance on the Side Stage was among his favorite non-Werks set of the weekend. “They are moving up the list of my favorite bands quickly because what they bring to the take is so fresh and different than anyone else out there right now.”

The weekend also featured several breakout performances. New York’s Mister F and Teddy Midnight created a buzz in the Big Tent Stage. North Carolina’s Big Something capitalized on their first Werk Out appearance on the Side Stage with a high energy afternoon performance on Saturday afternoon, while Maryland based band Litz turned heads during their Big Tent Stage set, which featured a sit-in from Twiddle keyboardist Ryan Dempsey.

In fact, the weekend was full of sit-ins including Twiddle’s Mihali Savoulidis and The Werks’ Chris Houser performing with Greensky Bluegrass and Dopapod’s Rob Compa shredding during Twiddle’s “Apples.” And according to Derrick Webber of Ypsilanti, MI, these sit-ins add a new element of musicianship for some of his favorite musicians. “It blows me away to hear such clean performances from guys that don’t typically play together, and the passion they still have is inspiring.

The weekend’s ultimate sit-in featured members of the Werks, Twiddle, Greensky Bluegrass and Big Something in Matt Butler’s Everyone Orchestra. Butler finds a way to coordinate a variety of musical sounds, while leading his EO members to create unique and one time only jams. Twiddle bassist Zdenek Gubb stepped on stage to lead the EO to the highest energy, grooved out dance party of the set. However, Houser received the set’s MVP award for showcasing a variety of styles, genres and face-melting solos throughout the performance.

Beyond the music, the Werk Out featured a large number of vendors, giving attendee’s a variety of food, beverages, merchandise and crafts to choose from over the weekend. Vendors for the weekend all were competitively priced, creating a fairly priced and active marketplace throughout the weekend.

Nick Augustine, a first time Werk Out attendee from Maryland, noted that his favorite non-musical part of the weekend was the fire spinners and propane dance floor set up near the late night stage. “What a cool addition to the atmosphere!”

The Werk Out looks to return to the Legend Valley Music Venue and Campground for its eighth installment next August. The venue has plenty of space for the festival to grow without the inconvenience of having to move locations to accommodate its growing popularity. What the Werk Out does right is that it cultivates an environment of friendship and community while packing its line-up with musicians and artists that clearly have solid working relationships and mutual respect for their fellow musicians.

Augustine, who told NYS Music that he will be making the Werk Out an annual addition to his summer festival plans, said it was the overwhelming sense of community that made the festival a stand-out event. “The staff, the crew and the people were all adding to making this festival fun, beautiful, exciting and safe. From the decorations to the sound and lights to the amount of good vibes and vending, this festival was one of the best I’ve attended!”

August 19, 2016
Closing In On Tumbledown: An Inside Perspective with Ryan Dempsey of Twiddle

Vermont’s favorite band, Twiddle, will be hosting Tumbledown as a part of Burlington’s yearly summer Maritime Festival at the waterfront in Burlington, July 29th-30th. I had the pleasure of interviewing Ryan Dempsey, keyboardist of Twiddle, to get the inside perspective. Dempsey shares how the line-up came together, the special connection that they have to Burlington, as well as a few other interesting bits and pieces about the event to let fans know what’s in store for them this coming weekend.

Chelsea Erin Wright: Hey Ryan! So many people, including myself, can’t wait for Tumbledown! This is Twiddle’s first big event, in your home state of Vermont. Can you tell me a little bit about how you guys came up with the name, and why you chose Burlington as the location?

Ryan Dempsey: We came up with with the name when we were looking through our lyrics. There’s this song called “Amydst the Myst”…we also thought it was a really recognizable name that people wouldn’t forget. There’s no other festival out there that has the name Tumbledown, but it also has to do with a song that’s important to us and it’s catchy…like come on tumble down to the waterfront! I think it sounds good. We chose the waterfront because it’s the most beautiful spot in this area, a great place to see a show…have fun, relax watching the sunset and experience good music…we love it and want to promote Burlington, and we’re a Vermont band so what a better way to do that. I grew up there, so it’s a special place to me.

CW: You couldn’t have picked a better spot! Your long-time loyal Vermont fans thank you for choosing to throw it here.

RD: Absolutely!

CW: You guys chose some really amazing acts to accompany you for the weekend-it’s such a great variety of musical styles. I’d love to hear about how you guys came together & crafted your line-up?

RD: We sat down in the tour bus and thought about the line-up, and considered who we would want to be a part of it to get a good vibe going, and who we want to promote…to have a wide variety of musical styles…a little bluegrass, a little funk…a little of this and that. Also, they’re all our friends, and we chose the people that were available on our list…we’re more than excited to have them come, because they bring a positive message. Nahko, Cabinet, Holly Bowling…all of the bands bring a good vibe, and that’s what we want to encompass. We think we nailed it with the artists that we got to be a part of this event. I’m very proud and thankful to the artists who chose to get involved.

CW: I’m pretty sure you nailed it. I think it’s funny, a few years ago I recall having a conversation with you about the Kitchen Dwellers, and you were so stoked on them. I had never heard of them at that point, and since have seen them several times in Vermont at Nectar’s in Burlington, as well as The Frendly Gathering the past two years – they are so great, and I’m really happy they they’re playing Tumbledown with you guys. Can you tell me about your love for them?

RD: Yeah-here’s the story about the Kitchen Dwellers…they’ve become my really good friends. When we were on tour years ago, we played a show in Bozeman at a place called the Filler, and my ex-girlfriend from Bozeman said “hey, let’s go back to this party”…so we go, and we find out when we get there that there’s a bluegrass band who lives there, and they just play music in the kitchen. We learned that they went around to all of the college hot-spots, and played in peoples kitchens. They were clearly bringing a really big vibe and were gaining a scene quickly. They were so young at the time, like 18 or 19…Mickey and I set up our gear and jammed with them in the kitchen at this party, and thats how we became friends. So on the frequent trips I would make to Montana, I would stay with them and we became very close over the years…I got to watch them grow just like we did, starting out at college and expanding outward. The difference was that they were playing in all of the kitchens surrounding the local college scene…they’re a great band, a mixture of jam, funk and bluegrass. They’re killing it…I’m really proud of them, and I’m excited to see what they’re going to bring to Tumbledown.

CW: Awesome-speaking of which, can you tell me a bit about the Kitchen Cabinet?

RD: Kitchen Cabinet will be playing an after-show for Tumbledown, which is a combination of the band Cabinet and the Kitchen Dwellers…they’re both bluegrass oriented bands, and so they are for the first time coming together to blend their sounds. It’s going to be excellent, because they’re both amazing bands, made up of amazing individuals and talented musicians. I’m stoked to see what they’re going to come up with…I know Mihali and I will be sitting in with them. We can’t wait to see what they have in store.

CW: Nice, so we’re going to see whats inside the Kitchen Cabinet and it’s going to be good, I’m sure!

RD: It’s going to be delicious…it’s already making me hungry.

CW: Hah indeed! What would you say is going to make Tumbledown different than your typical maritime festival on the waterfront?

RD: It’s our first big event, and we’re so happy to see the love and support it’s gained so far. People from all over New England will be there…the ‘Frendly crew’ will be there. It’s going to be the first time we’ve had any of these bands in one place together…I’m going to be wearing a tutu. We’re working on a great set…we’ve worked our butts off on making this a fun event. It’s a community of great bands, and we’re offering something that you can’t really get at any other festival.

CW: Yeah that’s what it seems like-it’s like the communities of Twiddle fans, Frendly Gathering folks, and the Burlington scene, as well as many other ‘Frends’ from out of state, are coming together and intertwining, from the waterfront to downtown Burlington – where you can venture around at your own pace, while getting the chance to spend the weekend taking in the beauty of Vermont’s greatest city. This is an amazing opportunity!

RD: Exactly, and rain or shine its beautiful…you’re in one of the most beautiful places in the world, that people dream about. Last year we played the maritime festival, and we got an amazing sunset. This year I hope for people to look at and take in their surroundings, to feel the beauty of Vermont, and to experience the community of Burlington. Also, the idea of so many people from all of the New England states coming together, being friendly and creating a good vibe…just enjoying the music and having a great time….it’s exciting!

CW: I’m also very excited about it, and everyone that I’ve talked to is also stoked for the entire weekend.

RD: Good…you’re not allow to come. I’m making sure that the police escort you out.

CW: Oh wow okay, that’s great. That sounds really appropriate to me..

RD: Yea, I’ll pick you out in the crowd and be like “That girl, Chelsea…shes out”.

CW: Okay so, does that mean that Officer Frodjo’s going to kick me out, or will it be you?

RD: That’s a paradox, I don’t know. We’ll see what happens.

CW: Cause we’re frends…but Officer Frodjo and I are not.

RD: No, no yeah, we are frends…but Frodjo does not like you. Because you’re a good person, and Frodjo doesn’t like good people. You know like every other evil, corrupt cop…anyway, next question.

CW: HA! Yeah, so…while the music is the most exciting part, I know a lot of work and support has to come from many sources to put on a successful event. Can you share some of the ways in which people are coming together, to help make Tumbledown the best experience that it can be?

RD: Yeah, so we have a non-profit organization for charity called the White Light Foundation. We’re choosing many different ways to help the community, such as providing for homeless people and those in need. My dad is in charge of helping the homeless people of Burlington, he’s doing a great job…all of the excess money is going to go towards helping charities, which is great. We’re going to have Frisbee golf and a disc golf tournament, and the proceeds from that will go to the White Light Foundation. We’re going to have a PhanArt exhibit at Nectar’s, which is a great way for fans and artists to creatively express their love for bands such as Phish, Nahko, Twiddle…they can come up with their own art related to songs or lyrics, and they get to make money off of their art while also contributing proceeds to the White Light Foundation. This is bringing the artist community together to be a part of the event, which I think is huge. I’m wearing a tutu, that’s bringing many people together…

CW: That’s all amazing…and yeah the tutu, clearly that’s going to draw many, many ladies Ryan. And men.

RD: Yeah, the charity’s not important at all…it’s all about the tutu. But really those parts of the festival allow people to congregate and do something different during the music. It’s going to bring a lot of positivity. And Higher Ground is supporting us, which is helping us to make it possible…we couldn’t do it without the people of Burlington, and our supportive family of . We’ve had a lot of sponsorship…Ben & Jerry’s, the Outdoor Gear Exchange, Keep Vermont Weird…they’ve all been a huge help.

CW: Awesome. Let’s talk about the video that you made to advertise the event. It’s pretty rad that you were able to make it yourself, since video is something that you’ve always been into

RD: Yes, I was not expecting the amount of attention that my video got…we went downtown, Alex my girlfriend filmed it, and we have another friend who films, who provided some footage from Capitol Theater to add to it. The premise of that video was going downtown with a puppet, and approaching a bunch of random people and asking them to be a part of our video. It got like 20,000 hits within a few days. Then we made a second video with Frodjo…I had fun with it. Yeah, I went to school for film and am definitely a film guy…Frodjo is my avenue out into that world, having fun and making it a thing to promote Tumbledown.

CW: Sweet! What are you most excited about, as the days wind down to the event?

RD: Probably when I get on stage and pull off my tutu, and then pull my pants down, I’m going to get arrested

CW: And then it’s going to be over, because Twiddle’s not going to play Tumbledown…unless you’re going to have a 3 man show.

RD: Yeah, and then Twiddle’s going to breakup because they’re mad at me. Yeah, that’s what I’m most looking forward to. But really, in all seriousness I’m looking forward to Nahko…he is my biggest inspiration. Also, Madison Pruitt is coming and I believe she’s going to be playing a couple of shows…she is from Ohio, and is amazing. She’s a 16 year old girl who is just incredible, she’s going to blow up. I love all of the bands, but right now I’ve been following Nahko pretty steadily. I’m looking forward to sitting in with as many musical experiences that I end up a part of during the after-shows, and Mihali’s show…It’s just a full 2-days of music for me, the thing I love doing. I’m looking forward to all of it. I don’t doubt that everyone’s going to have a good time, so I’m looking forward to the aftermath of hearing people talk about it and seeing the photos.

CW: Cool! Well thank you so much for taking the time to share the inside perspective, and I’m looking forward to the very first Tumbledown! See you there!

RD: I’m looking forward to seeing your pretty face there, and everyone elses! Thank you for interviewing me, and I’ll see you soon!

Check out Twiddle’s website for more information.

July 24, 2016
Twiddle, Tauk, Holly Bowling and Matisyahu Combine for an Epic Night at The Capitol Theatre

Take the fastest rising jamband in recent years, add in a hot prog-rock band boiling over with talent, a classically trained pianist performing the music of Phish and The Grateful Dead, and a cross-genre reggae singer and you have the fixings for one of the best nights of live music The Capitol Theatre has seen this year, and that’s saying a lot., with Twiddle, Tauk, Holly Bowling and Matisyahu to credit.

The night began with Holly Bowling’s performance at Garcia’s, a benefit for The White Light Foundation, Twiddle’s charitable wing. Being that this was Garcia’s, Bowling offered a spirited mashup of “Help on the Way” > “Slipknot” > “Theme from the Bottom” > “Franklins Tower” and a full Terrapin Station suite. Phish’s “Taste”, a newer addition to her repertoire was full of energy, as was the set closing “Harry Hood”, which found Twiddle keyboardist Ryan Dempsey joining for the latter portion of the song, leading to true keyboard cavalry between the two who enjoyed the dual experience immensely as evidenced by their ear to ear grins.

The remarkable talent of TAUK is something that continues to translate well directly from their studio albums, with an exclamation point placed firmly upon their music in the live setting. Fans gaped in awe at the musicianship performing an opening hour long set. “Eleanor Rigby” -> “In Bloom” capped off their set, a familiar appearance in setlists, and one that beckons for more variety from this quartet who have immense talent contained within to stretch into unfamiliar territory.

While a sell out of the Capitol Theatre is a goal for any rising or established band, it’s not like Twiddle hasn’t played to larger audiences. The rally around the band by the fanbase created an electric feel with familiar faces everywhere, even of those who are uninitiated to the music or skeptical of the group. The fans, these ‘Twiddlers’ (among the variety of names they have for each other – Frends, Twiddiots, Twiddlenauts, etc…) are what draws in attention to the band, as much as the band itself does. Like any mass following of a musician, the community that rallies around them is reflective of the music, and the base has the emotive welcoming personality found in Twiddle’s music. There is a syncopation between the music and the fans, something observed last year after attending four Twiddle shows over three months.

The “Blunderbuss” opener caught many off guard, as it was a debut fresh from the upcoming Plump Chapter 2, and a tight instrumental at that. The “Polluted Beauty” jam was driven by Gubb’s bass and Brooke’s drums, with an impressive funk jam that developed in “Wasabi Eruption” that was a highlight of the first set. Then “The Box” showed up and built off that energy; the build and electronic tone is the reason why “The Box” stands out as one of Twiddle’s strongest jam vehicles.

The all too familiar reggae sound of Twiddle was front and center in the set closing “Lost in the Cold.” It served as the perfect song for Matisyahu to join on with vocals, an unforced and natural fit, after having expressed admiration for the band. Following his contribution to “Lost in the Cold,” he took off his jacket and upon getting fans on the floor to put their hands up, he unexpectedly stage dove into the crowd. You don’t see this at jamband shows, or really any non-punk/metal show for that matter. It was a headscratcher as we headed into setbreak, but the energy from the set hardly dissipated.

A five song second set opened with “Grandpa Fox,” a little proggy no nonsense starter. And when there was a need for funk to keep it rolling, there was a driving funk, like in “Apples,” which featured a Michael Jackson medley and a severe dub jam as well. You gotta like this song. “Snycopated Healing” chilled things out with music to sway to, but “Frankenfoote” picked things up. Dempsey played the keys with his toes on this light, traditional Twiddle song, and one that is easily accessible to rookie fans. The encore began with a truly gracious Mihali giving thanks to the moms in attendance as well as the fans who sold out the Capitol Theatre only an hour before doors opened. With that, fans were treated to a bouncy “Zazu’s Flight” > “Hatti’s Jam” and “When it Rains, it Poors.”

Throughout this truly enjoyable show, the one aspect that I kept returning to was that despite the great deal of talent in the band, both individually and collectively, there are some spots where they play too few notes and could fill in some space, as brief but critical as those spaces may be. A lot of notes isn’t a bad thing.

This show at The Capitol Theatre was enough to wash away any bias and open eyes to see that Twiddle is a reset button on the jam scene, one in which they are strong advocates for the rising stars of the next wave of live bands. The history, the venue, and the centrality of location right off Interstates 95 and 87 led to their biggest NYC area venue show to date. The Beacon is the new goalpost in the continued domination of the band in Northeast markets.

May 10, 2016
Exclusive Interview: Ryan Dempsey of Twiddle

Tim Merrill of Sugar Foot Photography sat down with Ryan Dempsey, keys player for Vermont’s hottest “three dimensional” rock band, to talk Twiddle tour, influences, favorite bands, and even a bit of politics.

Check out the video interview below.

Catch Twiddle next in New York May 7 at the Capital Theatre in Port Chester, and July 8 at Brewery Ommegang in Cooperstown.

Full Tour Information

April 27, 2016
Twiddle Rings in the New Year with Three Album Run

Over three sold out nights in Burlington this New Year’s weekend, Twiddle played into the past, present and future of their musical catalog and continued to prove why they are one of the most talked about bands in the jam scene. The packed crowds at Higher Ground were treated to three very different nights of Twiddle. The band highlighted their three studio albums and substantiated that their latest release PLUMP is a showcase of where their live performance is headed.

Twiddle roared in the New Year in vintage style. A “Gatsby the Great”-themed evening saw the band and fans dressed to the nines for New Year’s Eve. With several extended jams and a night packed with fan favorites, the band played their second studio album Somewhere on the Mountain in its entirety, while interjecting several non-studio fan favorites, including “Gatsby the Great” and “Hatti’s Jam,” throughout the sets.

As an album Somewhere on the Mountain evokes the party, so it was fitting that Twiddle chose to play all 12 tracks on the biggest party night of the year. “Doinkinbonk!!!” into “Apples” became a 40-minute dance party/sing-along to two of the band’s most infectious songs. During “Apples,” Soul Monde’s Russ Lawton (drums) and Ray Packowski (keys) joined the band onstage while Twiddle’s Ryan Dempsey showed off his skills on the marimba. A dual drum performance between Lawton and Twiddle’s Brook Jordan added an unexpected element to the song, making it one of the evening’s most talked about moments.

The first set closed with “Syncopated Healing” from the band’s most recent studio album PLUMP and a special guest appearance from Dempsey’s father, Stephen Dempsey, on saxophone. The song’s placement on night one was a bit of a red herring, as to not spoil the puzzle of what nights two and three would contain.

The second set saw a weaving of non-Twiddle moments, including a tease of Phish’s “Divided Sky” as well as a meaty jam of Daft Punk’s “Robot Rock,” in the middle of a nearly 20-minute version of “The Box.” The night ended with a more mellow approach as Twiddle cooled off the crowd with “Beethoven and Greene” before ending with a “Gatsby the Great” Reprise.

While Twiddle rang in the New Year with a contagious groove, they started Friday night’s New Year’s Day performance with a glimpse into the band’s future. Joined on stage by “The Frendly Horns,” featuring Rich Williams (tenor sax), Adam Sawyer (trombone) and Chazz Canney (alto saxophone), the band once again intertwined non-studio songs among the tracks of their third studio album, PLUMP.

The album’s opening track “Complacent Race” was debuted live for the first time, while the album’s horned tracks were brought to life for fans for the first time. It’s one thing to upgrade your band’s sound in the studio, but live the task is more difficult to pull together. If the sound on PLUMP is where the band sees their musical direction, they managed to prove two things on Friday night. First, that this newly debuted, polished studio sound is not outside of their ability to reproduce live. And second, that even PLUMP’s polished studio tracks have space to expand.

“Polluted Beauty” and “Indigo Trigger” were launched into deep, nasty funked-out vehicles for the band to showcase where this newer material can go. On the other side of the coin, the band’s ability to weave tracks like the bluegrass-rooted “Hattibagen McRat” or the instrumental “Latin Tang” so seamlessly into the album’s mix show that this new material holds just as much of a viable place in Twiddle’s live show as does anything else they play.

By the end of night two, many fans had started to put the puzzle pieces together. So on Saturday night, it was no surprise that the evening began with the opening track from Twiddle’s debut studio album, Natural Evolution of Consciousness, titled “The Catapillar” and ran through the album’s first four tracks before closing out the first set with two unrecorded gems “Earth Mama” and “The FRENDS Theme.”

Night three contained less songs, but longer jams and more guest appearances. “The FRENDS Theme” featured Jack Mitrani (Frendly Crew) on electric guitar and vocals. Scott Hannay from Mister F (keys) and Jamie Armstrong from Lucid (saxophone) sat in during the second set opener “Tiberius,” while the second set closer “Frankenfoote” featured Lucid’s Lowell Wurster on washboard.

While the three day run didn’t include much in the way of catalog rarity, what it lacked in surprise it more than made up for in production value. Twiddle demonstrated a growth in technical skill and creative staging. Their studio polish appears to be rubbing off into their live performance with precision, turn-on-the-dime transitions and unique musical moments. The latest addition of Evan Antal as Lighting Director (Zed’s Dead, Kendrick Lamar) on this three-day run elevated the overall show experience.

What’s most striking and noticeable about Twiddle’s growth is the rather intense development and involvement of their fans within the growing community. Fan artists continue to develop and execute inspired art from prints, clothing, pins and other merchandise that seem to be moving the band’s name further into the masses. Friday and Saturday nights saw a strong presence by the band’s fan-founded charity the White Light Foundation—all signs that Twiddle has an army of dedicated fans behind them.

While some jamband fans debate the validity of Twiddle’s increased fan base and continued success, the band managed to show that over a three-night run in their hometown they are diverse, growing and paying attention to the details. All three nights sold out nearly a month before New Year’s Eve, evidence that Twiddle is quickly outgrowing the smaller venues their fans have grown comfortable seeing them in.

As Twiddle prepares for its 2016 “Plumperdump Tour,” the small run of mostly 1,000-plus ticket theaters may be a sign that you won’t be seeing the band in smaller, more intimate venues again anytime soon. A good thing for the long list of fans clamoring to get into the band’s most recent sold-out shows for the majority of this past fall and winter tours.

Twiddle heads out on Jam Cruise 2016 on Jan 6. The band will be on a short hiatus before kicking off the Plumperdump Tour in Portland, Maine, on Feb. 18. Spring dates are expected to take the band back out west and look to be announced in the coming weeks. Recent announcements include Twiddle slated to open for The Disco Biscuits at Red Rocks on June 4.

Photos courtesy of Greg Horowitz Photography

Recording of 12/31, 1/1 and 1/2 are available at Archive.org.

January 5, 2016