Photos courtesy of Anthony Tran Photography

Does absence make the heart grow fonder? Absolutely. Well, does absence set you up for a possible heart attack at the mere mention of your favourite band coming to tour? Without a doubt.

I mean, it’s not every day that your beloved teenage idols pop into town and deliver a ruckus of a show — especially when they’ve been on hiatus for so long. The famed indie rock trio haven’t set foot in Australia for years, to begin with. Though after frontman Alex Trimble’s run-in with health complications, it seems only fitting for the band to have taken a good break. Thankfully, Two Door Cinema Club have been back in full swing following the grand release of their third studio album, Gameshow. (And heck, it showed.) This headline tour had been a long time coming for the basement people of Perth, and quite miraculously, it brought along the company of two of Australia’s most popular indie rock acts — Last Dinosaurs and The Creases.

Opening first was the latter; the alternative indie rock four-piece established an effortless start to the evening by playing a handful of their breakthrough tracks. However, it wasn’t until the commencement of ‘Is it Love?’ that their performance truly picked up. (Prior to the second half of their set, it seemed the band had gotten off on the wrong foot — or a dull note, you could say.) Yet by the time they ended off with ‘Impact’, The Creases had recouped the hype attached to their name, with charming dad-dancing and snappy tunes aplenty.

Last Dinosaurs, on the other hand, had marked the stage with verve right from the get-go. The acclaimed indie rock four piece, hailing from Brisbane, selected their best tracks for their set along with a few from their recent album, such as ‘Take Your Time’ and ‘Apollo’. Their most remarkable moments were their one-of-a-kind covers of classics and modern radio hits. It was an incredulous moment as Last Dinos launched into their stellar cover of Stardust’s ‘Music Sounds Better With You’ — and even more so as both Sean and Michael partook in a mind-blowing rendition of ‘Slide’ by Calvin Harris. (This included them tackling segments of rap with their own twist!) Of course, what would be a Last Dinos set without them playing older, dreamier hits from their debut album? Tracks from In A Million Years were commemorated nicely, with audience favourites such as ‘Weekend, ‘Andy’ and ‘Honolulu’ having been given their righteous moments to shine.

Following the theme of rolling with classics, headliner Two Door Cinema Club prescribed way too much groove than was possible to handle. Their stupefying entrance saw the boys jump into songs off their very first oeuvres, Four Words To Stand On and Tourist History. Crowd favourites like ’Cigarettes in the Theatre’, ‘Undercover Martyn’ and ‘What You Know’ have always commanded enthusiastic outbursts from audiences far and wide; though they were almost a decade old, they were obviously no less wonderful. Amidst a striking, frenzied light show the boys enlivened the atmosphere and took their tap-worthy tunes to a whole new level. On record, TDCC are great — but in person? You’re in for a ride.

From shrill thrills and divine melodies, to the stellar guitar skills of Sam and Kevin, the trio’s set was every bit clean-cut as it was fucking glorious. (With a vocal range as flawless as Alex’s, you’d be giving your gift to the world, too.) No doubt, similarly uproarious choruses from Beacon and Gameshow were serenaded to a joyous audience; ‘Sun’ and ’Next Year’ and were amongst the show’s highlights, and certainly sparked some old flames. (Nostalgia was calling, and all the sentiment tied to TDCC had well and truly come flooding back. Perhaps I’m biased but I wasn’t the only one in ecstasy.)

The band also smashed out ‘Je Viens De La’ live for the first time, alongside recently released tracks such as ‘Are We Ready? (Wreck)’, 'Fever' and ‘Bad Decisions’. Despite all the wild excitement, the trio were the perfect combination of vibrant, as well as calm and collected. The boys had done this countless times before, but this didn’t detract from their ability to send tremors and impart some sweet magnetic energy. 

From MySpace to playing at the highest order of music festivals, Two Door Cinema Club are to remain well-known for reinventing and carrying on the legacy of indie rock. Yes, the boys were a long way from home — but they were as close to the heart as could be.