Ireland's
Two Door Cinema Club transform into a glitzy disco and synth pop-infused powerhouse on their third studio album, 2016's
Gameshow. Having garnered favorable attention for their infectious, dance-rock-heavy 2010 debut,
Tourist History, the trio of singer/guitarist/programmer
Alex Trimble, guitarist/singer
Sam Halliday, and bassist/singer
Kevin Baird immediately began expanding their sound on their follow-up, 2012's
Beacon. However, where that album found them maturing with a softer musical palette and weightier emotionalism,
Gameshow is a dynamic shift away from the buoyantly kinetic guitar-based approach of their first two albums. Which isn't to say they've completely abandoned their post-punk roots; tracks like the ferocious "Gameshow" and the dynamic "Surgery" are a perfect balance of
Scary Monsters-era
David Bowie and
Seven and the Ragged Tiger-era
Duran Duran. That said, the lion's share of
Gameshow is filled with pulsing, neon-toned dance numbers that sound equal parts
Giorgio Moroder and '70s
Bee Gees. While name-dropping influences feels a bit too easy for the high quality of songwriting on display on
Gameshow, the enthusiastic nature by which
Two Door Cinema Club have clearly gravitated toward these old-school dance club sounds is worth mentioning. In that sense, the metamorphosis from garagey post-punk to hip, R&B-inflected disco also brings to mind the similar trajectory of contemporary acts like France's
Phoenix and Canada's
Arcade Fire. Thankfully, the album never sounds like a retro pastiche, and instead the band has found a sweet spot between vintage cool and modern sophistication. These are vibrant productions courtesy of
Beacon helmer
Jacknife Lee, who frames
Trimble's yearning tenor croon with juicy laser-beam synths,
Halliday's kinetic
Nile Rodgers-esque guitars, and
Baird's hip-swaying bass riffs. Cuts like "Bad Decisions" and "Fever" are catchy, falsetto-heavy groovers that bring to mind a mix of
the Bee Gees' Saturday Night Fever soundtrack and
Off the Wall-era
Michael Jackson. Similarly, the romantic and sad-eyed "Invincible" sounds amazingly like a
Justin Timberlake ballad if produced by
ELO's
Jeff Lynne. With
Gameshow,
Two Door Cinema Club ultimately balance a growing pop maturity with a stylish strut worthy of Saturday Night Fever's Tony Manero. ~ Matt Collar