They’ve played all of the major festivals, both in and outside of the U.S., and have headlined shows in incredible locales such as Japan, South America, India, and South Africa just to name a few. They’ve been the proud (and if I’m to insert my humble opinion here, extremely well-deserving) nominees and recipients of awards for the likes of VH1, MTV, and SPIN, NYLON, Billboard, and Paste magazines. For some reason, the expression “infinity and beyond” comes to mind here, because I truly feel like these guys have something really special going and the sky is most definitely the limit for them. It’s been a long time since I’ve discovered a band whose material for lack of a better expression, just “does it for me,” from start to finish on each album. These guys are simply amazing at what they do.
I was able to pull lead guitarist/backing vocalist, Sam Halliday, away from his busy afternoon in Philly, to chat about new album Beacon, where they hope to travel, what the writing process is like for a band that stays so busy, and an unlikely combination- ginger beer and KFC.
On this album, you worked with producer, Jacknife Lee (The Cars, U2, R.E.M., Snow Patrol, Bloc Party, AFI). I know he had all sorts of interesting instruments that he encouraged you to guys experiment with, but were there any in particular you were most fond of?
There was this African instrument that was really cool, but I don’t remember the name of it. It was this little wooden thing with metal-like knobs that you can adjust the pitch with.
Do you think you’ll work with him again in the future?
Definitely. He’s such a pleasure to work with, and he’s so humble and nice, and he just loves music and doesn’t force ideas. He’s very creative and his studio is phenomenal.
How is this record translating live though? Are you having any trouble recreating it all in a live setting?
It’s good. I mean it’s difficult to know how much of the album people know already. I think we’re starting to get a bit more comfortable with the set too. It’s always interesting because you never know what songs people love when you first start playing them out.
When you tour, you tour with drummer, Benjamin Thompson. How is that relationship? Is there any sort of weirdness since he’s considered sort of an “unofficial” member or does the partial partnership work well?
It’s improved the show so much; he’s definitely become like a full live member of the band, there’s no doubt about that. We have been doing this for so long together that it would be strange to sort of let someone else into the inner circle and the workings of it all. Letting someone else into those conversations and decisions would be tough I think.
I know you guys have been constantly traveling throughout the last few years, it’s probably even safe to say more so than a lot of other bands. Where are some of your favorite places to travel & tour?
We really love playing America. It’s so much fun traveling around in American buses, visiting the crazy parts of America, along with the little parts too. It’s just so different everywhere you go, just so interesting. Aside from that, South America is cool, Mexico, parts of India as well, and Tokyo is always a great show. We recently went to Cape Town and it was phenomenal, so we’d love to go back there.
Anywhere you’d like to play that you haven’t yet been to?
I think more in South America. We’ve only done a couple of shows in Brazil, and I’d love to go to Argentina, that’d be really cool. I think like you were saying, we’ve probably toured more than a lot of other bands but it’s funny- we always complain about not having any time and we’re always on the phone asking why we can’t go to Argentina, why we can’t we go to China… we’re our own worst enemy, you know?
Do you notice festivals in the U.S. being different than elsewhere?
We love playing festivals, festivals are great. I think the UK has some massive festivals and they’re probably too big sometimes, but we do really like some of the somewhat smaller ones in Europe. I think sometimes they’re nicer because the lineup attracts the right crowd. I think sometimes when lineups are too big, it attracts a lot of people that maybe really aren’t there to see the music, and it doesn’t really happen too much in America but in the UK there are some festivals that have such commercial lineups that they maybe attract those who aren’t really there to see bands and music, they’re just there to sort of get…well, hammered.
You’re list of credentials is incredible. Are there any that you’re most proud of?
I think the NYLON Magazine one was super cool. I heard they named us New Album of the Year. I think we maybe sometimes think we’re really not the coolest band in the world, so that was a really nice pat on the back. At the same time, I think that the mtvU Woodie was really a big shock to us. That was super nice because we concentrated so much on trying to be taken seriously in the U.S. We toured more here than anywhere else last year, and we really put the time and effort in, so it was so nice to get noticed by one of the biggest music companies in the country, in the world even.
Every band writes differently. Some work quite a bit while on tour during whatever down time they may have. Do you guys write a lot on the road or save it all for when the touring wraps up?
Both- we do write a lot of ideas on the road, more so personally like on our phones or making little beats up on an iPad, or working on little guitar lines during a sound check. I know Alex writes a bit of lyrics while on the road, but it’s hard to make the time because our schedule is so crazy, especially at the minute. There’s no sitting around all day; we don’t have the time. We’re still thinking about this record I think. With the last one though, that’s kind of what we did; we kept ideas from the road and we worked on them at sound checks, but really it all came together when we finished touring and moved into a house together and focused solely on writing. But we may not be able to do that anymore, so we might have to sort of adapt and try new things.
You guys just performed for the second time on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. How was that?
It’s definitely one of our favorites. He genuinely seems like a lovely guy, and he’s the only person that has ever come in and said hello on one of those talk shows, and that goes a long way. We’ve done Jimmy Kimmel before for example and I’m sure he may be lovely, but it’s just a simple knock on the door to say thanks for coming. On this show, Jerry Seinfeld was on with us and I’m a massive Seinfeld fan, so it was cool.
What or who would be your dream sponsorship?
Would you be disappointed if I said KFC?
(I burst into laughter, but really, I can’t blame the man here; their biscuits are pretty on point).
Oh, wait I know- Old Jamaica ginger beer! Love that stuff!
What’s next for you guys? What are your plans for the next year?
We’re touring Europe in November and then hopefully come back to the U.S. for a bit in December, and then Japan in December as well. Then we’re going to Australia in the New Year and then probably do it all over again. It’s pretty much non-stop for us.
Now there’s a surprise (insert sarcasm here). If you want to learn more about the band composed of remaining members, lead vocalist/guitarist, Alex Trimble and bassist, Kevin Baird, visit their website at www.twodoorcinemaclub.com. There you can find music, videos, upcoming shows, and much more. And let me say this as a last note, if for some reason the band isn’t coming to a city near you, if at all possible, plan a trip to go see them elsewhere. You will not regret it.
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