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Like many other great bands, our introduction to the Melbourne octet Architecture in Helsinki was via recordings of John Peel's annual Festive Fifty show, which included their intriguing track "The Owls Go." With this album they take their well-deserved place among other great, theatrical, experimental pop ensembles such as Bearsuit, The Decemberists, and Of Montreal. Old-timers like me might also be reminded of Eggs, especially when the trombone kicks in. The songs are complex and sometimes ambitiously epic in scope, but always intimate and inviting in sound, and imbued with loose, punky energy and a real sense of fun. Live, the band is a spectacle of constant motion as members reposition themselves and switch instruments mid-song. Likewise, the songs transform themselves as well: for example, the opening track "Neverevereverdid" morphs from an operatic vocal with fake theremin to a shout-along new wave spaz-out. Styles combine in new and surprising ways: "Do the Whirlwind" is a rollerskating jam with sitar; "Need to Shout" gets all Caribbean, while the following short instrumental "Rendezvous: Potrero Hill" combines ice-skating rink organ, reggae guitar, and pretty cascading flutes. Throughout the album band members all contribute vocals, individually and together, contributing to the overall communal feel. This is just the kind of inventive, energetic, boundary-crossing stuff that's been tickling my fancy lately. At just over 40 minutes and chock full of delights, the album is over before I want it to be. (mike.07.05)
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