Do you like handclaps? A Melbourne eight-piece with a pretentious name and a penchant for cute pop Architecture in Helsinki have completely and utterly "made with the handclaps" on their debut album.
With liberal use of said handclaps, along with breathy boy/girl voices, and plenty of glockenspiel, vibes, and other cute-pop must-haves, this eight piece from Melbourne has come good with an album that actually dares to make cutesy schoolyard pop the one thing that it usually isn't-- challenging. The songs are ambitious but also very carefully arranged. For example, in the hands of a lesser band "The Owls Go" would be a jumbling, chaotic mess, but instead the eight members of Architecture in Helsinki manage to weave electronic blips and whistles, various horns, call-and-response vocals in and out (and under and over) what is otherwise a simple acoustic power-pop jingle.
There are some bombastic moments such as the lively ode to firebugs "Kindling" or the instrumental opener "One Heavy February," but the most rewarding tracks are the subtler ones, such as "Souvenirs" or "Where You've Been Hiding," where the songs seem so fragile and momentary that you wonder if whether simply in the act of listening you might be damaging them somehow. Fingers Crossed won't appeal to all, especially if the idea of grown men and women channeling kindergarten kids makes you want to slap someone. But if you can handle a bit of pigtails, handclaps, and maybe even a thumb piano, you might not find a more finely crafted and rewarding pop record than this one this year.
1. One Heavy February
2. Souvenirs
3. Imaginary Ordinary
4. Scissor Paper Rock
5. To And Fro
6. Spring 2008
7. The Owls Go
8. Fumble
9. Kindling
10. It's Almost A Trap
11. Like A Call
12. Where You've Been Hiding
13. City Calm Down
14. Vanishing
More about: Architecture in Helsinki
