REVIEW: Twin Peaks gives honest, fun performance at The Sinclair

There’s nothing quite like an intimate, close-quarters rock concert, and there’s nothing quite like Twin Peaks, a band incredibly adept at putting on those very types of shows.

Twin Peaks, formed in 2010 near Chicago, released its third studio album “Down in Heaven” in May and is currently on tour promoting the album’s release. On Wednesday, the band brought its indie-rock sound to The Sinclair in Cambridge.

The show was opened by Golden Daze, an alternative rock band from Los Angeles. From the first beat of each song, nearly every audience member was tapping a foot or nodding their head to the tunes, whether they knew the songs or not.

The music itself was mellow and smooth. Every song blossomed and added instrumental layers in a way that seemed almost unnoticeable. The songs had a soothing quality about them, yet there was a quite a bit of energy beneath every single one.

Next on the line-up was “together PANGEA,” a four-piece punk rock band also from Los Angeles. The band’s music was raw, unpredictable and prone to screams or abrupt tempo changes at any moment.

William Keegan’s lead vocals rang out as rough and gravely. At some points it seemed as though Keegan was shouting the lyrics at the audience instead of singing them, which simply added to the group’s “garage band” feel.

Dedicated fans of together PANGEA, or at least of high-tempo punk music, were definitely present in the audience. A sizable mosh pit formed by the beginning of the set’s second song, and more than a couple of crowd surfers appeared before the band left the stage. The music was angry and honest — two essential qualities of punk music.

There were softer moments from the group. The song “Offer” in particular began only with Keegan’s vocals and a single guitar before hitting harder later in the song.

Although their songs were fuzzy, emotion-filled and intense, together PANGEA played like a band ripe with experience. Their sound was tight and calculated, and each instrumentalist was talented in their own right. Erik Jimenez, the band’s drummer, put on a particularly fantastic show.

At one point near the end of the set, a few technical problems popped up, and while some members of the band hurried to amend them, the remaining players on stage began to improvise and play an impromptu song. It simply reinforced how comfortable together PANGEA appeared on stage.

Next to take the stage was Twin Peaks, the tour’s headlining act.

The group opened with “Butterfly” a track from “Down in Heaven.” The song set the tone for Twin Peaks’ entire set.

It’s difficult to pin a genre onto Twin Peaks. Its songs sound like those of popular alternative and indie-rock groups, yet there’s an undeniable country and southern rock influence in the mix as well.

Interestingly, four out of five of the members sang lead on at least one song. Most of them took over main vocals for more than one. The band did not have a lead singer, adding an interesting variety to every song in the set list.

The amount of fun that the members of Twin Peaks had on stage was second to none. Each player jumped and danced along with the music they were playing to such a degree that it was nothing but infectious.

The crowd reaction differed from song to song. Cheers erupted when the first chords of the band’s hit “Making Breakfast” rang out from the speakers. The reaction was similar when “Wanted You” opened up the band’s encore performance.

The entire show felt intimate and honest. This came about, in part, due to the nature of the venue. The Sinclair could not have been a more perfect fit for this particular show, a fact that the members of Twin Peaks pointed out, calling it their favorite place to play in Boston.

There was little-to-no showmanship involved with any act. Each band simply walked on stage, drinks and instruments in hand, and played their songs to the best of their ability. Every guitarist who played did their own mixing and pedal work, onstage and on the fly.

There was energy and heart behind every performance, and the barrier between performer and audience was broken nearly all the way down. Almost no one in the audience was focused on taking pictures or recording the sets. Instead, the acts and the audience simply created memories together, and it made the show just a little more special.