Two Door Cinema Club + St. Lucia + Peace

Two Door Cinema Club, a trio from Northern Ireland, has stumbled upon a hyperactive form of soft rock. Singer Alex Trimble's gentle voice might be better suited to soppy emo, but give the kid credit for avoiding the Owl City ghetto. Beacon, the band's sophomore album, pushes the Postal Service's electro bedroom drama into arena-sized forms with a pinch of Muse epicness, fidgety Afrobeat guitar lines and New Order discotheque bliss. The baggy boys from Birmingham in Peace look to ignite the third wave of Britpop. The band's world-wanting, singles-stuffed debut, In Love, sees the early '90s as the salad days, when the Charlatans, Blur and thick bowl-cuts dominated music rags.