Architecture in Helsinki - In Case We Die - In Case We Die seems to be a "love it or hate it" kind of album, which is perfectly understandable. The songs run circles around themselves trying to hit as many different genres and moods as possible, almost all of the songs would sound perfect as a theme song to a children's cartoon, and most of them are nothing more than pure pop ear candy.
My question is, what's wrong with any of that? If something is good enough, it can overcome any perceived "disposability" or other genre limitations. Are "She Loves You" and "I Want to Hold Your Hand" anything more than disposable ear candy, albeit extraordinarily well-done ear candy? If you can accept that bubblegum pop can be great art, you can love Architecture in Helsinki.
So, back to the songs themselves: a high dosage of caffeine is recommended, as they rip through genre after genre with the energy of my little sister after her fourth can of Mountain Dew (that's the only analogy I can come up with after being back at my parents' place for a few days). They could never be labeled "minimalist" either, as there are so many people in the band that there's never a lack of anything to listen to (the CD even comes with a helpful spreadsheet to help you figure out what instruments are played on what songs). Having so many instrumentalists (it's only eight, but that's still twice as many as your average rock band) creates for some interesting and unusual arrangements as well: check out the sitars, synthesizers, and saxophones jamming together on "Do the Whirlwind."
Overall, In Case We Die is an enormous improvement over the previous Architecture in Helsinki album, Fingers Crossed, and fits nicely in the indie rock spectrum somewhere between Belle and Sebastian and the Polyphonic Spree. (Did you ever think you'd hear those two bands lumped together?) Highly recommended for anybody who doesn't think of the word "twee" as a bad thing.
1 comment:
It's 5!
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