On December 5th, I set out on a clear, snow-packed night to witness Twin Peaks at The Sinclair in Harvard Square. Twin Peaks played an earlier all-ages show as well as a later 18+ show, of which I saw the latter. 

Twin Peaks, the 5-piece rock band from Chicago, couldn’t sound more different from their TV counterpart. The only thing they have in common is the liberal use of the Fender Rhodes keyboard: an analog keyboard that was most widely used in the late 60’s and 70’s and was popularized by the legendary Ray Charles. In fact, most of Twin Peaks’ aesthetic was downright retro, sans any kind of new twist. There was just a whiff of guitar effects as their tone held a classic warmness. Rhythm guitarist Clay Frankel had zero guitar pedals. That lack of frills and decidedly mid-tempo rock places this band firmly in the garage rock category.

Chatting with audience members revealed quite a number of concert goers held over from the first gig to catch both shows. There were different opening bands for each set so the show wasn’t exactly the same, one could reason. From the get-go it was difficult to fight through the crowd on the ground level so I decided to try a different tactic and claimed a vantage point on the wrap-around Sinclair balcony. I sidled up to an outpost with a photographer who said he was a friend of the band’s. He carried a humongous camera with a lens the size of a thermos. After sliding my 150-pound frame ever so slyly into a railing spot between a couple of dudes, I finally found a good position to watch the action. 

First up was Lala Lala, also from Chicago. The band delivered a spirited performance, filled with tom-happy drum grooves and whisper-sung vocals from lead singer Lillie West. On songs like the catchy “Destroyer,” these vocals stayed firmly tethered to the ground until lifted by lead harmonies from fellow band members, usually in a chorus or heightened emotional point of the song. The strategy worked well and the band swapped instruments fluidly, with the bass player/drummer/guitarist/keyboardist switching roles interchangeably. They had beautiful gear in general, as they were decked out in all manner of flashy digital keyboards, as well as boutique Fender guitars. The packed crowd bobbed along, and even got into some light pogo-ing by the end of their set.

After a brief break between the opener and headliner, Twin Peaks took the stage for Round Two. They were dressed inconspicuously working class: from left to right they wore a plain white T, a jean jacket and jean pants (bonus points for the bowl cut), plain gray crew neck, and Carhart overalls, with the drummer bringing up the rear in a plain black muscle shirt. 

Twin Peaks brought up the energy in the room by charging into gang chorus of Today’s Hits cover “What Up Dog.” When they launched into their second song, hit single “Making Breakfast,” the crowd went from pogoing to spontaneous moshing. A brave soul with long hair in flannel climbed up to the front of the stage, turned around and hailed a salute to the crowd. He then stage dove and began to crowd surf, prompting a security guard with a flashlight to snake his way through the audience in attempts to chase him down. Watching it all transpire from high above on my perch, I was reminded of the little ghost trying to catch Pac-man in the classic video game.

Twin Peaks’ vintage garage rock chug held the middle ground while they used tempo changes to perfectly sequence the set list. They revved up into “Casey’s Song” and then slowed it down with “Ferry Song,” creating an earned sense of chill. One particularly fun interplay was with Cadien Lake James and Colin Croom, who would shred guitar and keyboard (respectively) during jam outs. The band seemed in no hurry to get anywhere throughout the night, happy to spread out instrumentals and let the songs breathe.

Everyone but the drummer took turns singing lead while the others often joined in on chorus backing vocals. This strategy provided a welcome perspective shift throughout the performance. As this focal point shifted, the audience was invited to connect on a deeper level with each member when it came time for his turn to sing. 

The old school vibes kept on coming as the band brought on members of the early show’s opener, Ohmme. Sima Cunningham and Macie Stewart in LBDs shared a spotlight in the back and provided excellent backing vocals as well as synchronized swaying. The energy in the crowd intensified as the night wore on. Emboldened by the stage-diving pioneer earlier, more and more people began to try their luck, some with more success and sobriety than others. The energy was at a 10 when an errant beer can flew over the drum riser, narrowly missing drummer Connor Brodner’s head with some liquid spilling onto his shoulder. He just grinned and laughed it off.  

Twin Peaks didn’t speak much throughout the night, letting the music do most of the talking for them. The only bit of banter other than the inevitable “Hello/Thank You, Boston!” was when they noted their geographic proximity by asking the crowd if anyone in attendance goes to Harvard University. The crowd jeered back at them with a resounding, “NOOOO.” `

Their set ended and the lights went dim in anticipation of an encore. After two high energy performances in one day, I was surprised that they had the strength to carry on. They crawled back to a healthy smattering of applause and began the encore. Colin Croom played keyboard with one hand and held a Narragansett in the other. Everyone’s singing voices held up just fine somehow, no doubt due to the shared the vocal duty. They closed with “Oh Mama”, featuring a particularly impassioned vocal turn from Clay Frankel, before Twin Peaks exited the stage for good and headed out into the snowy New England night.

Find a few photos from the show below.