Categories : Electronica, Music Reviews, Rock + Pop.
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Rating: 3/5 Released: August 21, 2007 Reviewer: Nathan Atnikov |
These days, it’s not unusual for a band to employ one or two multi-instrumentalists to flesh out their sound. Architecture in Helsinki were ahead of the curve on that when they formed in 2000, with every member being able to play multiple instruments, and with no fear of incorporating anything and everything into their songs.
But to call the tracks on Places Like This “songs†doesn’t seem to do them justice; these are ideas. And there are dozens and dozens of ideas packed into a few minutes each of frenzied energy, without a care for cohesiveness or categorization.
Places Like This is delightfully close to spinning off the rails at any moment – the amount of sheer energy combined with the vast instrumentation and a ridiculous number of concepts in each track is something to marvel at, both when it’s working (‘Heart it Races’) and when it’s not (‘Debbie’). The vocals recall everything from Isaac Brock to Eminem to the Cookie Monster, and somehow it all seems to work.
AIH occasionally reach a little beyond their good ideas – the siren sounds in ‘Hold Music,’ for example, are loud and grating – but for the most part they show a surprisingly deft touch in not getting carried away.
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