Two Door Cinema Club is a sprightly pop-punk
offering.
In nature, it’s new wave like the dance-punk bands with drum machines that the '80s gave us (Tom Tom Club rings a bell…but they weren’t the only ones). Okay, so we’ve heard this before. And it’s true, we have. But if there is one thing that’s tough to do, it’s delivering great dance vibes in fun to listen to pop songs. Two Door Cinema Club’s music is high-voltage, drum-oriented energy that serves a distinct purpose for those hearing it - giving them a solid reason to dance.
TDCC is a four-piece unit from Ireland that formed back in 2007 with members from the band LifeWithoutRory folded in. It wasn’t long after that the band started gaining the attention of a fervent audience base. After the independent release of a five-song EP (Four Words To Stand On) in 2008, the band began to secure the praise of most critics. That EP contained three excellent songs (“Cigarettes In the Theatre”, “Do You Want It All?,” “Undercover Martyn”) that are also found on the band’s first full length album, Tourist History. The other two songs (“New Houses,” “Standing On Ghosts”) remain unique to that early collection.
Tourist History was released in early 2010. The album is best known in Europe and Australia, where it has already placed fairly high in the charts. However, this is likely to change in the US as “What You Want,” a perfect pop tune from the album is charting better here than the song did in Europe. The complete ten-track album itself is a fine debut with a penchant for tightly formed songs from a band that has a path charted out for them.
The strange thing is that Two Door Cinema Club, while being a dance-styled band, also kick out some tunes that indicate a deeper musical quality. Songs like “What You Know,” “This Is The Life,” and “Do You Want It All?” indicate a genuine post-punk intelligence. Mix it up with drum tracks, and this band has a great formula going.
Two Door Cinema Club is currently touring with some dates in
the US that has been gaining them stateside fans due to their energetic live
shows as well as their wonderfully crafted songs. It’s always fun to watch a great band with
the right stuff make themselves known by their ability to consistently create
fantastic compositions. With Tourist
History, Two Door Cinema Club clearly have the chops
to push stronger albums into the mainstream. This band is just getting started.
