Two Door Cinema Club and Friendly Fires

Two Door Cinema Club are a Northern Irish electronic/alternative rock duo. I saw them at the Ritz Ybor in Tampa back in 2012 and they were amazing! They brought all the energy of a stadium concert into a medium sized venue. The stage setup, with laser lights, made their music feel like a party. You’d be surprised at how well they play the crowd.
Their music uses a lot of electronic bleeps and blurps but blends the bass and guitar in perfectly. Their sound is funky and they add unexpected musical elements to make them a one-of-a-kind band. Their set included “Something Good Can Work”, “Undercover Martyn”, “Sleep Alone” and the eponymous “I Can Talk” – with its unmistakable intro. They also know how to slow the music down, however, and Two Door Cinema club played some slower tracks beautifully. They are true artists on stage that have mastered their instruments. The lead singer croons perfectly on key all while managing the energy of the room depending on the song. Some times we slow danced, some times we jumped up and down like lunatics. Either way, Two Door Cinema club is DEFINITELY worth seeing. And since they are not internationally huge yet, their ticket prices can often be under $30, making the experience a steal.

Touting one of the finest collections of indie-pop in UK history, Hertfordshire trio Friendly Fires are a treat to behold live. Fans of rabble-rousing, dancefloor infernos and cutting meticulous shapes will swoon at mainman Ed Macfarlane's ringleader approach to gigs, manipulating audiences into pools of boogie-ing mayhem. With a pelvis like Elvis, Macfarlane's hip-game is on fire – and that, in itself, is a magnetic force sure to draw throngs. His penchant for floral shirts is pretty impressive too. Doozies like “Paris”, “Kiss Of Life”, “Hawaiian Air”, “Jump In The Pool” and “Skeleton Boy” are frequent set highlights. Doused in the kaleidoscopic chaos of spotlights and strobes, the three-piece are insistent when it comes to crafting a party atmosphere. There's no room for standing, beard-stroking, or pensive poserism; if you arrive at a Friendly Fires show, you'd better be prepared to sweat. You'll ache in the morning, but boy, you'll have had the time of your life the night before.
They've been a quiet storm over the past couple of years since the release of 2011's Pala, but in recent talks with NME and other outlets, they've begun to discuss the prospect of a newfangled psychedelic direction, which is an exciting notion. Electro-indie-dance-psych? Phwoar.