Tourist History

I admit it. I’m late to the bandwagon that is Two Door Cinema Club. I had heard a snippet of one song on MTV in between mindless reality shows and dismissed it as nothing more than a catchy melody with a hip sounding track behind it. It’s really my own fault that I didn’t give it any more thought than that. It was about two weeks ago that a friend told me about them and gave me their album “Tourist History”. Yet again, it took me a while to sit down and actually give it a thorough listen.

Without a doubt, Tourist History is one of the tightest sound ‘pop rock’ albums that I’ve heard in the past year. Two Door have mastered the art of writing those ear worms that undeniably stick in your head. Some songs start out with ambient intros of processed sounds like the bob-your-head “Come back home” while others boast insanely catchy guitar riffs and percussion like the album opener, “What You Know”. Their songs are simple but have strong and distinct layers of instruments and vocals.

The melodies are straightforward and keep the song in forward motion and never seem stale or reused. The tracks have a backbone of pop but also manage to fit in some techno riffs and textures, most notably found in my favorite track, “I Can Talk” with it’s processed vocal rhythms and Gameboy breakdown.

I really wasn’t expecting such a cool and seasoned sound from this young, relatively new band but I am definitely impressed and looking forward to their next release.

Stand Out Tracks:

I Can Talk

This Is The Life

Cigarettes in the Theatre

You’re Not Stubborn

I'm With You

In 2006, the biggest rock band in the world was selling out stadiums, making people wild over their music, and making millions of dollars. Then they dropped off the face of the planet. For four years, the Red Hot Chili Peppers disappeared. One member played in other bands, one went to school to study music theory, one had a son, and one left the band. After being enshrouded in mystery for so long, they burst back onto the music scene this summer with a new guitarist and a new album, “I’m With You”.

I’ve been listening it over for the past two weeks or so and somehow, it manages to sound like classic Red Hot Chili Peppers (slinky, funky, poppy, and melodic) while at the same time being something very new and modern sounding (textural, electronic, and gritty). This ‘new’ sound is most likely attributed to the new member of the band, Josh Klinghoffer, who has played with the likes of Gnarls Barkley, PJ Harvey, and John Frusciante, the previous guitarist of the Chili Peppers.

The album is experimental and at times almost avant-garde sounding. There are layers of guitars and keyboards on almost every track and a great deal of Latin sounding percussion. The standout songs feature some classic Chili Peppers touches and motifs. Between the downbeat rap of “Look Around” and the mellow crooning of “Meet Me At the Corner”, lead singer, Anthony Kiedis is in fine form, sometimes even trumping his past melodic ventures. The frenzied beginnings of “Monarchy of Roses” transition into the pristine disco pop chorus naturally and the odd time signature bass groove of “Ethiopia” highlights the dynamic rhythm section of the band.

Despite being the freshman band member, Klinghoffer contributes some excellent guitar parts and background harmonies, as well as some unlikely guitar solos in a very different way than his predecessor. He finds his sonic range in the band with seeming ease and ability.

Overall, it has taken some time to grow on me but I am really impressed with the album. It is different than their previous works but that’s what is great about music: It’s always changing. I’ve read both positive and negative reviews of the album but in the end, it all comes down to personal taste.

Stand out Tracks:

Ethiopia

Did I Let You Know

Monarchy Of Roses

Factory of Faith