Two Door Cinema Club; the indie rock sensation that is art come to life on stage. The Northern Irish trio are known on the indie scene for their infectious lyrics and riffs, and lead singer Alex Trimble’s interesting and performative stage presence. I first experienced a Two Door show in 2021 in an open, crowded field at Leeds Festival, a bit different from the intimate yet still crowded show at Doncaster Dome on Wednesday evening.
After a brilliant supporting set by Sheffield’s own Sam Scherdel, the lights came down, the crowd got loud and the band took the stage. Opening up with two iconic tracks off their stellar debut album Tourist History (seriously one of the best debut albums in the genre to date) ‘This is the Life’ and ‘I Can Talk’. Throughout the night, I was quite surprised by the constant mosh pits forming in the audience. Even though the crowd missed the beat a few times, and tried to mosh to tracks that don’t call for a mosh pit, the passion was there, which clearly amused the band as they were consistently smiling at the wild scene below them.
The clear highlights, the songs screamed the loudest by an already screaming crowd, were ‘Next Year’, ‘Undercover Martyn’, and ‘What You Know’, all catchy guitar-heavy tracks with dance breaks constructed into the melody. Watching the band play was a highlight within itself however, guitarist Sam Halliday and bassist Kevin Baird were always riling the crowd up and bouncing around in their corner of the stage, whilst Trimble did his own thing in center stage. I have to give it to their drummer Ben Thomspon however, who was pointed out multiple times to me for the number he was doing on that drum kit. His heart and soul were coming through the beats, as he looked like he was trying to break through the drums themselves, which was incredibly mesmerising to watch.
Despite Two Door releasing a new song ‘Sure Enough’ just over a month ago, it was surprisingly absent from their setlist and instead the set was incredibly tailored to what the audience would know, most tracks taken from their biggest known albums Tourist History and Beacon. The song ‘Changing of the Seasons’, off of Beacon, was one of the best performed, slightly slowed down from the original track with an instrumental break before returning to the heartbreaking lyrics ‘But I don’t love you anymore, anymore.’ The versatility and irony in Two Door is what makes them special in the indie scene, they can take gut-wrenching lyrics and merge them with the catchiest bass and guitar that will keep the ideas of optimistic heartbreak in your head for hours.
Don’t get me wrong, the band’s older music will forever be an indie staple, but I would have loved to hear more of their newer stuff. Off the newest album (2022) Keep On Smiling only two songs were featured, ‘Lucky’ and ‘Wonderful Life’. The record was synth-heavy, and upbeat and I feel it was sadly overlooked by fans who just like to say they miss the ‘old sound’, a worrying comment that often unknowingly shapes setlists behind the scenes. However, Two Door Cinema Club is a band that has evolved and grown since their debut in 2007 and the Doncaster crowd appreciated every minute of the show, including the impressive new stuff, and many shoulders were sat on in an attempt to sing these to the band themselves.
For my first concert at the Dome, the sound quality was great, despite the vocals coming through a bit muffled at times, and I was impressed by the capacity; whilst I was slightly crushed in the aforementioned pits, it was rather spacious inside and perfect for a winter gig. For both international hits like Two Door Cinema Club and local talents like Sam Scherdel, the venue was perfect, as were the performances. Two Door rocked the house and in comparison to my experience at Leeds festival, where my part of the vast crowd seemed rather disinterested, I think their music is made for more intimate venues. You could feel the buzz of joy coming off the stage and infecting the audience, how everyone in that crowd adored the music even if they didn’t quite know the lyrics.
I hope to see the band perform more of their newer music next time, and, after the altering of ‘Changing of the Seasons’, maybe hear more of a slower sound. Despite the show at Doncaster being added late in response to their UK tour selling out, it felt like fate brought together Two Door Cinema Club and the incredibly lively crowd on Wednesday night, and I hope it brings us together again someday (though maybe with less mosh pit bruises).