Architecture in Helsinki

After a particularly kickass concert experience, Bongo asked whether anyone else has ever gone to see a band they’ve never heard of and walked away a fan. Well, JZ and I had the pleasure of just such an experience tonight, when we went to see Clap Your Hands Say Yeah at the Vic in Chicago. The headliners were great, and the first opening band, Takka Takka, was very good. However, it was the second band, Architecture in Helsinki, that completely rocked the audience’s collective socks clean off. Seriously. By the end of the set (which was fairly long), we were all like, “What the hell happened to our socks?! Oh, yeah. Those guys really rocked!” I’m not sure how to categorize their music. Mostly, I would place them firmly in the “rawk” genre, but there was quite a bit of 80’s British synth pop, good use of some Clash-style Caribbean beats, tight harmonies, and a female vocalist that could give Neko Case (who I freaking love) a run for her money any day of the week. Plus, it looks like every member of the band can play any instument. And their last song was dedicated to the late Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin, which is hard to beat. I don’t know how big they are in their home country of Austrailia, but, in my humble opinion, they must be Huge. I don’t think they’ve broken the U.S. market yet. So if you happen to live in a city on the current tour, I say it’s well worth your money to sneak a peek. Upcoming dates include First Ave on Oct. 4th (yes, that’s you, Minneapolis, and that’s tomorrow). So fork over, and get rocked.