Twiddle’s show almost two weeks ago at the Brooklyn Bowl in Las Vegas saw them make an effortless transition from “Subconscious Prelude” through Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues” and on into two of Elvis Presley’s more famous covers, “That’s All Right (Mama)” and “Hound Dog.”

Should this have been unexpected coming from the jam band? Probably not considering the tight, almost telepathic musical bonds that Twiddle’s four bandmates have established over 12 years of perpetual touring.

Twiddle began in 2004 and 2005 when guitarist and lead vocalist Mihali Savoulidis and keys master Ryan Dempsey first collaborated in their freshman dorms at Castleton State College in Burlington, Vermont.

The band's strange, somewhat random name also came in this era of casual college noodling.

“When Ryan and I were in college, we were looking through a dictionary and ended up stumbling on a word we both dug,” Savoulidis said. “When you name a band back then, you never really think about if it’s really going to take off or not.”

The name, stuck, though, and just three years later, the band was complete with the addition of bassist Zdenek Gubb and drummer Brook Jordan. Since those early days in Vermont, Twiddle’s members have explored many of nooks and crannies of the musical diaspora for nuggets that they can squeeze into their sound.

“We all grew up listening to different people and it comes out in the songwriting,” Savoulidis said. “Because we come from such different backgrounds, the music really reflects that.”

Savoulidis comes from the blues and jam rhythms of Jerry Garcia and Trey Anastasio with a little of John Scofield’s jazz and funk thrown in there. Dempsey’s keys started with a classical background, adding a dash of jazz in discovering the likes of Herbie Hancock, John Medeski and Bernie Worrell. Drummer and percussionist Jordan’s roots lie in the love of rock bands like Nirvana and Rage Against the Machine. And bassist Gubb brings the funk from the likes of Bootsy Collins and Les Claypool.

Even Savoulidis’ guitar and equipment reflects an assorted taste.

“Customizing to my liking has been a passion for the past few years, so now my fully custom guitar has little bits and tones from all those players,” Savoulidis said. “Same thing with my amps and pedals: I have everything custom tailored to me. It’s been really fun to kind of create my own combination of things.”

This personalization allows the guitarist an effortless transition from a Twiddle song into an early '50s rocker through a Dead jam over an REM cover and back down to Twiddle again.

“Everyone in the band has developed diverse and phenomenal chops,” Savoulidis said.

This musical range and intimate knowledge of each others’ musical style have allowed the band to flourish, especially in the live music scene, where many view Twiddle as a band who can carry the torch down from jam bands Phish and The Grateful Dead. It doesn’t hurt, of course, that Twiddle has become a darling of the rock festival scene, appearing at Bonnaroo, Mountain Jam, the Electric Forest and even starting their own Tumble Down Festival on the shore of Lake Champlain in Burlington.

Musical multiplicity and mimicry also have come along with a diverse fan base. Bernie Sanders introduced the band at Tumble Down 2018. Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh teamed with Twiddle and The Terrapin Family Band at the Phil-O-Ween concert at The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, New York on Halloween 2018. And in April of last year, the band was named the house band for “The Dan Patrick Show,” the former ESPN anchor’s nationally syndicated sports radio talk show.

This popularity, however, has not stopped Twiddle from its constant touring in search of new legions of fans to bounce and twirl to the band’s tunes. As of the winter and spring of 2019, Twiddle is hard at work broadening this fan base west of the Rockies. Having already appeared at The Fillmore in San Francisco and The Troubador in LA, Twiddle arrives in Eugene on Friday to christen the newly named Sessions Music Hall (formerly Hi-Fi Music Hall).

Follow Matthew on Twitter @MatthewDDenis. Email mdenis@registerguard.com