Madi Shively, social media and promotions coordinator
Two Door Cinema Club’s performance at The Anthem transported me back to 2010. I left the venue feeling a need to purchase something from American Apparel and check out the vinyl section of an Urban Outfitters. It was that good.
I was skeptical to see the band that entirely redefined my taste in music (and introduced me to the alternative rock genre), but it ended up being one of the greatest shows I've ever attended. Even the opener, Joywave (check out their song “Dangerous” with Big Data) got the crowd perfectly amped and ready to relive the early 2010’s. Their set list consisted of a blend of old and new material, but they knew we were here to revisit their most popular albums: “Beacon” and “Tourist History.”
TDCC somehow made the drops during their live performance punch harder than they do in their music (the drop in “Come Back Home” hit me like a bus and I wouldn't have it any other way). The guitar solo that came after the bridge of “Eat That Up, It’s Good For You” prompted a moment of hype among the audience that I wanted to live in forever. What made their set the most fun is how most tracks allow for audience participation (see “Something Good Can Work”) making the energy of the crowd feel less like a concert and more like a 2011 indie sleaze house party. It pleased me to overhear so many audience members saying things like “I feel like I'm back in college again!”
The band also gave a very heartfelt performance of their song “Costume Party” off of their album “Beacon,” celebrating 17 years of the band’s conception. One of my favorite performances of the night had to be the high-energy “Undercover Martyn,” summoning the crowd to jump and bang their heads. Needless to say, the band closing with “What You Know” (the song I would listen to religiously on the bus ride to middle school every morning) completed my entire life and I could die happy. Two Door Cinema Club put the “rock” in alt-rock when they took off in 2010, and it pleased me to watch them uphold that same energy 14 years later. It was such a thrill to be able to hear the band that converted me to an alt-rock child at the age of 7—such a full circle moment!