Architecture in Helsinki Places Like This

• Words: Luciana Lopez
• Label: Polyvinyl
• XLR8R Rating: /10

Call this sextet "indie-pop" if you must, but that's a mighty narrow definition. With instruments usually relegated to music's margins (glockenspiel, tuba), Architecture in Helsinki has always been quirky, but on their third studio album, an international feel takes them beyond their Australian roots. Steel drums give "Heart It Races" a calypso feel, while "Like It or Not"'s boozy horns feel like distilled summer over lyrics about New York heat. Throughout there's a frenetic energy, highlighted by Cameron Bird's and Kellie Sutherland's vocals, which get almost screechy in their enthusiasm. Sometimes the album threatens to careen out of control, but the band generally pulls back in time. Playful and intense, the record takes the band somewhere new-and worth exploring.