Moment Bends: The Pleasant Obituary of Architecture in Helsinki
If you’ve ever listened to Architecture in Helsinki and wished that they take serious notes from MGMT, you’re in luck. And if you’ve always loved Architecture’s unique, imaginative and tonally deep sound, it’s time to bust out the tissues and prepare to start dabbing your tears away.
Moment Bends, the groups fourth full-length, is a disappointment. Not that it’s a terrible album; in fact, it’s beautifully produced and well thought out – something that may gain them a lot of new listeners. But if you’re familiar with their previous work this album runs the risk of ruining it all for you.
The most obvious fault of Moment Bends is the absence of the group’s former level of imagination.
In their previous three albums, Architecture made it a point to make a point with their sound. Tonally, the albums were plump as the Pilgrims’ Thanksgiving turkey. From warm to gritty to sharp, everything was layered on top of itself to gain a rich, unique sound. They even made a chart of all the different instruments it took to create Fingers Crossed (their first release) on the inside cover of its case – an impressively complex one at that. This was something they were apparently proud of. For Places Like This (the third release) they took it upon themselves to redefine the pop influenced genre. The album will make anybody take notice. They were a rarity within the pop influenced mediocrity that’s been quickly swallowing our youth. No holds barred imagination was the end statement.
For Moment Bends, however, it seems that they’ve decided to hold quite a good amount of bars. The sometimes unpredictable song writing and wide range of tones have been abandoned. Track one, “Desert Island”, is a well defining moment for the album. It has single minded tones, medium ground tempo, tame melody and an unsubstantial hook. Nothing else really happens from there on out. Yes, there are higher and lower points, but overall it’s flat. The first four minutes say it all.
You can still hear a bit of the old Architecture shine through at moments, but their style isn’t something that can be done half spirited. Melodrama was their key to success. If it wasn’t for their commitment and audacity to see their vision through to complete fulfillment, it never would have worked. Moment Bends, and it’s lacking thereof, is evidence to this.
In the end, it’s a decent album to get drunk and dance to - the more drunk the better.
Threat Level: Orange
-Maxwel Lemberger
