I knew that Two Door Cinema Club‘s May appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, a major American late-night television show on a major television network, was really going to help them break in America. What I didn’t expect was how far across the globe they actually were going to break: after playing festival dates all over the world this summer, the Northern Irish trio have over 193,000 fans on Facebook, and many of the dates on their current tour of North America this fall have sold out quickly. So it makes sense that after the initial release of their debut album Tourist History on Glassnote Records here in the U.S. on April 27 that they would release a deluxe, 2-CD version of the debut with some special features.
Disc #1 is identical to the original debut release, but for those of you who are not familiar with the album, here’s my review. A very interesting note: the tracklisting of the UK version of the album differs slightly from the American version, as the song “Undercover Martyn” appears as track 3 on the American pressing, and “Do You Want It All?” and all other tracks move forward in sequence. When I asked guitarist Sam Halliday about the change in track order, he said that it had been recommended to them that they move the more upbeat “Undercover Martyn” further up in the American tracklisting for a more immediate reaction. If you want, move the songs around on your mp3 playlist and see if it makes a difference in your personal listening experience of the band. For myself, I’m used to hearing “Undercover Martyn” as the closer in the one-two-three punch directly following “Something Good Can Work” and “I Can Talk,” so I prefer the UK tracklisting.
But let’s look at the CD as a whole. In general, Two Door Cinema Club songs have a good formula that works well every time. I’m not criticizing them or suggesting what they’ve done is simple; on the contrary, they know what each band member’s strengths are and use these strengths to build songs in the very best way they can. Red-headed lead singer/guitarist Alex Trimble has a voice that can be as gorgeously gentle: for evidence, see the softer bits of “Undercover Martyn”: “she spoke words that would melt in your hand / and she spoke words of wisdom.” I practically died the first time I heard that song. Skeptical? Watch the acoustic version of this song they did for ITN Music in January 2010 below.
But at the same time, he can also deliver sharp lyrics quickly , like the start of “I Can Talk”: “you won’t believe what I tell you / white clothes and clever minds will choose / you get a lot from this / loose tongue and arrogance / it’s not appropriate / don’t think that this is it.” My first impression of this lyric: it’s a slap in the face, in a good way. It makes you stand up and take notice. This is definitely not some frou-frou pop band. This is a band that writes songs with bite.
While you are probably most familiar with “Something Good Can Work” (played as background music on a Good Morning America photo montage) and “I Can Talk” (featured on the FIFA 11 soccer video game), there are some great non-single gems in Tourist History. “What You Know” begins with guitar chords, then beats come in, followed by Kev Baird‘s bass and Halliday’s incredibly melodic guitar, as if it’s another voice in the mix. Hands down it’s my favorite on the album. The bass is the star of “Come Back Home,” propelling the song along with Trimble’s expansive vocals. If you’re looking to fall in love, look no further than “Cigarettes in the Theatre.” If you want a bouncy number with less threatening lyrics than “I Can Talk,” go for “Eat That Up, It’s Good for You.” The only two songs that are not as engaging as the rest are “Do You Want It All?” and “This is the Life,” which break down a bit in the lyrics department. Thankfully, the guitars save the day.
Then we come to disc #2. It begins with the new track “Kids”, a song the band previewed when I saw them in Philadelphia in May. It’s classic Two Door Cinema Club: there are Trimble’s gentle vocal verses, then a fun, singalong chorus with Baird’s thudding bass and Halliday’s noodling guitar enjoying the spotlight during the instrumental bridge. It’s not as frenetic as “I Can Talk” but it’s a keeper. The rest of the disc are remixes, the most interesting one at the lucky number 7 position. This summer the band offered up the stems to “What You Know” and asked fans to submit their remixes of the song. The winning remix, as chosen by the band themselves, was by Sydney DJ and as described on a poster on his MySpace “fuuuuuuunky fresh Zulu synth warrior ” Cassian. As promised by the band, the remix was included on this deluxe edition. With the cowbell, it actually sounds like something that might have come out of the Friendly Fires studio.
What You Know (Cassian Remix) – Two Door Cinema Club by cassian88
The other remixes come from luminaries that you may not have heard of but you soon will. Manchester-based Everything Everything, a band who has turned everyone’s heads with their debut album Man Alive in August, remixes “Undercover Martyn.” “Come Back Home” is remixed by London’s Is Tropical, a band whose star is rising on the radio play of their forthcoming single “North Pacific” to be released in the UK in late November. The trio were recently signed to Kitsune Maison, the same French dance label that first discovered Two Door Cinema Club as well. Of all the remixes, probably the most fun is the Brazilian electronica duo the Twelves‘s take on “Something Good Can Work.” It’s what you would imagine Two Door Cinema Club would have sounded like if they had been making music during the disco era. In short, Tourist History is such a fun record, and the remixes just up the fun factor. Well done boys. We’re ready and waiting for your second album.
The deluxe edition of Tourist History, including a link to a special documentary, is available now. Two Door Cinema Club is currently on a tour of North America, ending on November 7 in Eugene, Oregon.
Tour Dates
Nov 02 – Music Box / Los Angeles
Nov 03 – Belly Up Tavern / Solana Beach
Nov 04 – Slim’s / San Francisco
Nov 05 – Hawthorne Theatre / Portland
Nov 06 – Neumo’s / Seattle
Nov 07 – EMU Ballroom / Eugene, OR
CD 1 Tracklisting
01. Cigarettes in the Theatre
02. Come Back Home
03. Do You Want It All?
04. This is The Life
05. Something Good Can Work
06. I Can Talk
07. Undercover Martyn
08. What You Know
09. Eat That Up, It’s Good for You
10. You’re Not Stubborn
CD 2 Tracklisting
01. Kids
02. Undercover Martyn (Everything Everything Remix)
03. I Can Talk (French Horn Rebellion Remix)
04. Come Back Home (Is Tropical Remix)
05. Undercover Martyn (Jupiter Remix)
06. I Can Talk (Moulinex Remix)
07. What You Know (Cassian Remix)
08. Come Back Home (Myd Remix)
09. Something Good Can Work (Ted & Francis Remix)
10. Undercover Martyn (Softwar Remix)
11. Something Good Can Work (The Twelves Remix)
Two Door Cinema Club: website | myspace | Two Door Cinema Club To Tour with Phoenix in Spring, Headline First North American Tour | “Something Good Can Work” video | @ Constitution Hall | Interview with: Sam Halliday of Two Door Cinema Club | @ Johnny Brenda’s | Two Door Cinema Club Announce Fall North American Tour | “Come Back Home” video | Two Door Cinema Club to Re-Release Debut Album with CD of Remixes and Special Documentary
