In 2010, a 3 piece Northern Irish band hit the Indie/Alternative scene like a ton of bricks. Two Door Cinema Club’s first album, vividly named ‘Tourist History’, broke all genre conformation with their stadium-style drum beats, rhythmically emphatic bass riffs and mind-shatteringly fantastic guitar compositions.
‘Tourist History’ really was an album of absolute perfection. It featured songs such as ‘Cigarettes In The Theatre’, which incorporates the beauty of old-school ‘Bloc Party’ with the raw, distinctiveness of the first ‘Arctic Monkeys’ album, as well as the unbelievably ear-addictive ‘Eat That Up, It’s Good For You’, which I challenge any music fan to not get up and wildly start bouncing off the walls with euphoria whilst listening.
The brilliance of ‘Tourist History’ stems down to what I like to call the teenage-prowess of the album. Each song is so catchy that you just can’t help but adore them. The powerful grittiness of the instruments used, alongside Alex Trimble’s vivaciously Northern Irish vocals make ‘Tourist History’ a teenage dream. The album was such a success, that ‘Two Door’ were picked to play in the Olympic Opening Ceremony. Not bad for a bunch of Northern Irish lads. ‘Tourist History’ has become immortalized.
Fast forward, and here we are, fans deftly anticipating a follow-up to the wonderousness of 2 years ago. On 3rd September 2012, ‘Two Door’ freed ‘Beacon’ from their creative chambers. As a MASSIVE ‘Two Door’ fan myself, I can speak for us all in saying that we could not wait to give it a listen. Unfortunately, in this musical age, a successful 2nd album is extremely hard to come by, especially given the fact that ‘Tourist History’ was such a great. ‘Two Door’ did not disappoint. As I said before, ‘Tourist History’ had all the elements of teenage brilliance, but with ‘Beacon’, it’s as if they have released the adolescent constraints and matured with vengeance.
Instead of rawness, they have replaced it with fantastically rhythmic power. They first released ‘Sleep Alone’, which, due to the band’s unbelievably packed touring schedule, forced Alex to have “really crazy dreams”, to which the song refers too. When the full album was released, the opening song ‘Next Year’ took me by storm. Every genre imaginable features in this song. Jazz-inspired percussion, R&B boom box style bass, Post-Rock filled guitar along with just a hint of Heavy Metal. It reminisces the good old days of the mighty ‘Beatles’, ‘The ‘Stones’ and has the creativeness of the masterful ‘Doors’. Bearing in mind that this is the introducing album track, you can imagine how quality ‘Beacon’ is.
The band has definitely taken a new direction, but have kept their original gritty and magic, which has fans like myself indulgent.The second release from ‘Beacon’ happens to be track 4 entitled ‘Sun’. ‘Sun’ is one of the varied songs that I have ever experienced, with its deep Reggae and Jazz roots, it features a whole heap load of ear-worming synths and orchestral trumpets, which in my view, add to the absolute brilliance of the track. ‘Sun’ is definitely my favourite off the album. It’s exceptionally chilled but at the same time incredibly uplifting. It is certainly a track for a hot summer’s day at the park.
What makes ‘Beacon’ such a fantastic album, is the fact that half is just like the first album, with its disco and groovy beats, but the other half comes from a band that seems like they have been writing masterpieces for decades. The way Two Door infuse all genres, instruments and technicality into one miraculous sound is why they will be a band to appreciate for years to come.