大象传媒

There's a right cornucopia of gigs in Belfast this December, and surely this is one of the most highly anticipated - a Christmas homecoming for Bangor lads Two Door Cinema Club, with some cracking support acts to boot. And despite such high expectations, the evening wasn't even a little bit anticlimactic.

First up are Not Squares, the local lads who've been taking everyone by storm this year with their astoundingly brilliant brand of electronic/scuzzy/thrashy/ravey goodness. They're as tight and on the money as ever, but being first on the line up on a Tuesday night is maybe a less than perfect slot for them. It takes a little while for the venue to start filling up, and a little bit longer for the punters to start to defrost enough to really get into Not Squares the way their immense tuneage demands. Still, it's impossible to be anything other than blown away - yet again - by the incredible awesomeness of the likes of Release the Bees and Asylum. Tunes of this calibre should really be floor fillers the world over - it feels like being part of a very select and secret club every time we get to see them.

Next on the bill are Dubliners The Cast of Cheers. At first glance, they're almost ever so slightly in danger of coming across just the teensiest, tiniest little bit emo/rock, but that's an idea that actually gets blown out your ears fairly quickly. Musically, they bridge the gap between Not Squares and Two Door Cinema Club rather nicely indeed; a bit frantic, a bit thrashy, and with riffs that are almost a bit Thin Lizzy-ish at times. They're less rave and more rock than Not Squares; but not quite as jangly or indie-pop as Two Door, all of which adds up to a great deal of craic altogether.

So, between great supports and the dance floor classics being played in the interim between bands, there's one hell of a party atmosphere going on by the time TDCC come on stage, despite the freezing temperatures outside. From the very first chord, everyone in the place goes absolutely buck daft in true Belfast fashion, with every single person there singing along to every single word of every single song

Incredibly tight - a testament to their ridiculously busy year of touring round the globe - utterly on fire, and with a set littered with one indie-pop cracker after another, it is astonishing and wonderful to see how far Two Door have come. And it's clearly on their minds too: they can't stop telling the crowd how amazing it is to be back playing in Belfast, and look chuffed to bits at the insanely fanatic reception they're given by the crowd.

All in all, it's a cracking party night, a great homecoming for a great band, and a fantastic celebration for Irish music in general. We should all be very proud indeed.

Orla Graham 听