These qualities that first drew fans towards Two Door Cinema Club are far more suppressed throughout Gameshow. “What You Know” and “Cigarettes in the Theatre” both demonstrate Trimble’s impressive vocal range. “I Can Talk” works in much the same fashion Halliday shows off his prowess in tremolo picking before an effect-laden bridge and guitar solo bisect the song. “Undercover Martyn,” considered a classic by long-time Two Door fans, features cooing guitar licks from Halliday as well as a synthesizer effect-filled bridge accompanied by palm-muted guitar. Perhaps what made Tourist History such an inviting listen was how it successfully intertwined electronic vibes and the basic qualities of an indie rock piece. Gameshow, however, with its generic pop sound and strange attempts at mimicking ‘70s disco beats, feels as if Two Door Cinema Club became lost and took a turn in the wrong direction. It can be argued that Two Door Cinema Club is an experiment in and of itself, especially considering the group basically created and pioneered their own genre, a feat that not many other bands have on their mantles. Unfortunately, Two Door Cinema Club’s third studio release, Gameshow (2016), is not what most were hoping for.Įxperimentation and dabbling in other areas of music is certainly not always a bad idea. The band reunited in 2015 and then, in October 2016, fans were finally able to hear the results of said hiatus. Following the success of their second full-length studio release, Beacon (2012), the trio– which is rounded out by bassist Kevin Baird– decided to go on hiatus so each could work on solo projects and find inspiration that they could eventually bring back to help produce a third album. The Irish rockers seem to be moving away from that distinctive sound with which they took the music world by storm, however. This is a trait Two Door Cinema Club shares with many electronic groups. It is also worth noting that, since their inception, Two Door Cinema Club has never had one set drummer they usually find a drummer willing to play with them during each of their tours, but when recording studio releases, the band utilizes a drum machine. They occasionally use those same effects to accentuate singer Alex Trimble’s vocals (though that should not be misconstrued as Trimble needing the help of special effects, as his vocal range is as impressive as any modern singer). In Two Door Cinema Club’s case, they use funky and obscure pedal effects to bring lead guitarist Sam Halliday’s creative guitar solos to the forefront. The alteronica genre can simply be described as alternative and/or indie rock with slight, yet noticeable, influences from electronic music. Two Door Cinema Club essentially created the genre, and it still really only applies to them (as well as a few other no-name experimental Irish indie bands that one can find while digging through SoundCloud). If the term “alteronica” doesn’t sound familiar to you, don’t be surprised. Part of what made the Northern Ireland-based group unique was the way they described their music: at the time of their founding, Two Door Cinema Club proclaimed themselves as an “alteronica” band. Although they were relatively unknown for the first several years of their existence, Two Door Cinema Club quickly became a household name within the indie rock scene following the release of their 2010 debut album, Tourist History.