It was the very next day after Halloween and the line to Elray’s made me turn green. Still thirty minutes before Twin River Revivalist took flight, and there was no end to the line in sight. I had arrived fifteen minutes earlier than that, standing close enough to the door to see Rod come out and back. Twenty bucks was the fee, but oh how it was worth it to see Twin River Revivalist hitting the scene. My Halloween party had come and gone, so I found the only drug I needed was in their songs.
Twin River Revivalists are a recent addition to the fantastic local music scene in Iowa City. Comprised of Haden Collett (Lead guitar and backup vocals), Roderick Rath (Lead vocals and rhythym guitar), John Haus (Drums), and a rotating lineup of bass players, including Caleb & Chris Dicken who played at the Halloweekend show. I hear a certain Wes Helmke, who also got some action up on stage, is gearing up to be their new bassist. Their set included covers of modern country songs by Zach Bryan and Toby Keith, rock songs by The Backseat Lovers, Kings of Leon, and Cage the Elephant, plus tons of classics, favorites of mine being Take It Easy by The Eagles, I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) by The Proclaimers, and The Chain by Fleetwood Mac. The band’s favorite tunes to perform on stage are Sex On Fire by Kings of Leon and Everlong by Foo Fighters. These are not half-assed covers, either; some covers were so accurate I felt as if I was hearing the songs from their originators! I’d use just three words: Precise, determined, and fun. Don’t get me wrong, there were some accidental tempo drops, re-tunings, and missed lyrics, but for a band with only a few live performances under their belt, they passed with soaring colors (Red, white, and blue, even?). Twin River certainly puts the Revival in the songs up on stage!
As of now, the band is playing mostly bar-gigs, having already played at Giddy-Up and Elray’s, which is a great fit for their type of music. Halloweekend specifically garnered a huge, fantastic crowd. People were meshing with each other like it was one big family. I suppose that’s generally the feeling of a Halloween night, the costumes creating that sense of community, but it really got amplified through the songs. I have to admit I’m no Zach Bryan enthusiast, but it didn’t matter, because when his songs were playing I was swept away with the bar crowd mania and let the bass vibrate up through my soul. I met the likes of Bob Dylan, Luffy, Joe Dirt, Shaggy, Tom Cruise, and the Stepbrothers, to name a few, and we all shared the joy of music!
I will say the experience of getting into the show was rough. Doors opened at 7, and I got first in line at 6:10. Unfortunately, I only had 7 bucks on me, so by the time I got back with more the line had stretched out to about 50 feet long and four shoulder widths thick. About halfway through the show I had to run out and do my fiancée a favor, but when I got back I was forced to wait 20 minutes until I got back in. But that’s the bar scene on Halloweekend in Iowa City for you.
Twin River Revivalist got their start when Haden and Rod started out jamming and playing their favorite songs in the streets, eventually making their way to house parties as a duo. John was interested and brought his drum-kit with the pair, creating a killer sound. With a couple connections produced by Haden’s previous band experience, they cemented their place in the bar scene. When asked about their future plans, Haden had this to say, “we all just love music and the experience we get to have making others happy doing something super fun for us, so we’d love to ride it out as long as we can, and maybe take a crack at getting back into the street and playing outside of the IC bars sometime soon.”
Check them out on Instagram @twinriverrevivalists. They’ll be playing at Elray’s this December 5th, so don’t miss it!
