Architecture in Helsinki: In Case We Die

by Melissa Welhams

The eight members of Architecture in Helsinki have produced a great follow-up album to their debut, Fingers Crossed. This one, In Case We Die, follows the same blueprint and layout, but develops both, with new songs and fresh ideas. Or, to be more exact, it follows the same lack of layout. The structure of the pieces is unique. Interludes, beginnings, even endings, seem to make little or no musical sense. However, this is one of the charms of Architecture in Helsinki, and the fact that they manage to pull off these unsystematic songs is testimony to their appeal. Almost completely at random, a perfectly upbeat song will turn into a solemn funeral march, or change to an angel’s halleluiah chorus. The techniques and instruments used on the album are also not your average, with none of the usual guitar/bass/drums arrangement. Instead, there are saxophones, harps, sitars, violas and even a musical saw layered over the top of the regular pianos, drums and guitar. Almost none of the songs use a bass at all. Even stranger is Architecture in Helsinki’s use of sound effects, with noises that would seem more at home in a children’s cartoon on an early Saturday morning. The vocals on all the songs are also one-of-a-kind, differing between low tones and high falsetto, almost-spoken and layered voices. Despite the lack of structure, unusual arrangement, strange lyrics and even song titles, Architecture in Helsinki remains an extremely enjoyable listen. It’s undefinable, indescribable and unmatchable.