Who would have thought that my early contender for Best New Artist would have been discovered through a remix? Yes, I discovered this band after one listen of the song Lasso (Two Door Cinema Club Remix) off the re-release of Phoenix's breakout album Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. While a remix album is usually the place for DJ's to add their take on a song, Phoenix instead chose to let burgeoning bands remix their songs, with the likes of Chairlift, Friendly Fires, and Passion Pit being among those to tap their creative flow into Phoenix's DNA. After one listen, I rushed to Wikipedia to research this band. One thing led to another, and soon I found myself at the Myspace of Two Door Cinema Club. The band didn't have much hype before this remix, but I began to see their name pop up around me. I knew they had made a miniscule mark when I saw their name smack dab in the middle of BBC's Sound of 2010 Poll, a annual list made by so called English "music professionals and tastemakers".But I knew only one thing could speak for Two Door Cinema Club: the debut album. Yes, after 1 EP and 4 singles, Two Door Cinema Club had yet to release a full-length. But the album is finally here. Released March 1st in the UK and April 13th in the U.S., Two Door Cinema Club's Tourist History had high expecations in their home of Ireland, as well as the UK. But does that mean it's any good?
Yes. It's good. It's really good. The album begins with "Cigarettes in the Theatres", which starts off with a repeating guitar riff and eventually turns into a complex full band jam. It's melodic, it's fun, and catchy, as lead singer Alex Trimble sings "Tell me your favorite things, tell me your favorite things". As the song fades out with a horn outro, the next song "Come Back Home" contrasts the first as this song is built around a repeating bass line. The band builds off this, first accompanying a synth and then spiky guitars. It's hard to believe this band is a 3 piece, as their music features many layers. Next comes the second single "Undercover Martyn" which starts off with a handclap before leading into one of the catchier guitar melodies on the album. This one is more vocal based than any other song, but that's not at all a bad thing. Trimble has a smooth flow and a strong foundation, and he has a confidence rarely found on debut albums. It's a rare thing these days to find a band that has such swagger on a debut. If possible, listen to the Passion Pit remix of Undercover Martyn. It adds a new feel to an already great song. The album continues with "Do You Want It All" where we first see Two Door Cinema Club slow things down, as this song builds into the peaceful repetition of "Do you want it, do you want it, do you want it all?" which, while simple, comes off as incredibly catchy. 2/3 through the track, however, the song changes pace and finally has the spiky guitars I first fell in love with. While maintaining the simple vocal repetition, this song finishes fast before drawing to a stop as the last word is rung out slowly by Trimble. Next comes one of my two favorite songs on the album, "This is the Life". A feel good song if there ever was one, Trimble finds himself singing "If this is the life, this is the life, this is the life, then who'd argue?". It's a downright catchy, feel-good song, something I've come to expect from this band, and so far there album hasn't let me down in that aspect. The next song, "Something Good Can Work" begins with what sounds like a drum machine, before turning into a song that sounds just like something Phoenix would make in the Never Been Like That era. It's a song that comes off as forgettable, and features the sound of party noises, which is obvious filler. This band has too much ability to have to rely on filler in a song, especially in a song that clocks in at 2 minutes and 44 seconds. It's not needed, and my first real disappointment on the album. I began to think things would continue in the realm of weird when the robotic chant of "Ah oh ah ah oh" rang in at the beginning of "I Can Talk". However, this song soon turns into one of the catchier songs on the album. A rising guitar riff reminiscent of early pre-electronic Bloc Party is culminated with the line "Now I can talk, no one gets off, I know how you like to". Again, strong vocal display from Alex Trimble who hasn't disappointed yet as he continues to show strong signs as a man with many capabilities, as his guitar playing is also one of the records strongest points. The next song, "What You Know", features one of the weirdest backing instrumentals I've heard in sometime. This song is full of great instrumentation, yet sadly comes off as forgettable. The lyrics in this song, however, are actually some of the strongest on the album, yet are outdone by an instrumentation that, while clever, doesn't necessarily mesh well. It's a good attempt, and there's only room for improvement. As the album reaches it's final two songs, I wonder if the album will feature any slow songs. The album is full of nothing but midtempo songs filled with a thumping bass, sharp vocal delivery and spiky guitar work. It would be interesting for them to change things up, slow them down. I would even like to hear a strictly instrumental song, because I felt like some of the musicality of the instruments was overshadowed by their vocal counterparts. However the ninth song will be more of the same, as the song "Eat That Up, It's Good for You" builds on everything that made Two Door Cinema Club interesting for me. The vocals are great and the instrumentation is more of the same but nothing really stands out to me. The band slow the song down near the end and it's shows a band filled with promise of making slow ballads as well as the uptempo songs they've become comfortable with. As the album reaches it's apex with "You're Not Stubborn", I'm immediatelly sensed with a feeling of disappointment that this song doesn't slow things down for me. It's more of the same, but that's not a bad thing.
This is a great album, but one thing seems to bug me. Two Door Cinema Club played it save. This is an band that found a used an already great formula (see Phoenix, Bloc Party, Clap Your Hands and Say Yeah) and put their own flavor in it. It's not bad at all. In fact, it's one of the better albums I've heard so far this year, behind Vampire Weekend and LCD Soundsystem. The songs are all catchy, and I could listen to the album for hours. It's short, at only 32 minutes long and 10 songs, although Alex Trimble and band pull a lot of different instruments into the album that it seems longer. My only complaint is that the album doesn't show a lot of diversity at all, as all of the songs keep the same formula and flow throughout them. For a band with seemingly so much confidence and swagger, Two Door Cinema Club almost seem scared to try anything different. I only hope this band break out, and as I'm finishing this up, I've noticed that their new single "Something Good Can Work" is available for free on iTunes. So check that out if you want a taste of what I'm talking about.
Final Grade: B+
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