The lovely Bird in Hand winery, situated in the picturesque Adelaide Hills, played host to an evening of wine, food and music, headlined by Melbourne’s Architecture in Helsinki. Greeted by wine vines with fairy lights and playing in the winery’s barrel hall facility, Architecture in Helsinki have a stage, surrounded by French oak barrels, moody low lighting and a bar offering an extensive range of delicious Bird in Hand wines and local beverages finish off the package. Setting a scene for some well-dressed barnyard dancing, it was a memorable setting if ever there was one, and the band was determined not to let the surroundings go to waste.
The band, fresh off the release of their new album, Moment Bends, takes the stage for this one off event. These days, Architecture in Helsinki is a trimmed five member quirky pop band, shaped down of the original 8-person experimentally focused collective. And it works for the better; they hit the stage and work with the crowd’s energy playing hits, ‘Hold Music’ and ‘That Beep’ to great applause, the latter of which comes complete with full band choreographed dance moves, an early set highlight. And it’s when playing their danceable pop that fans have the most enjoyment. The catchy tune ‘Like it or Not’ is an example of this, getting everyone dancing, with a mix of world drumming and horns showing their desire to create interesting and varied soundscapes with a focus on the indie dance floor.
New single, ‘Escapee’, is met with broad enthusiasm as it fills the hall with its positive energy, showcasing how far the band has come. The dual male/female vocals of Cameron Bird and Kellie Sutherland, are a hallmark of the current Architecture in Helsinki sound and they shine bright live, enjoying their surroundings as well as their time on stage. New album track ‘W.O.W’ slows the pace, and showcases Sutherland’s delicate vocals, with purple lighting and strobe effects bouncing off barrels completing the experience. The main set finishes with the popular ‘Heart it Races’, a fan favourite that ends the set on a sing along note.
Following the encore break, a reworked version of a track “It’5!” from their 2005 album, In Case We Die, is unleashed for the older fans. The show ends on recent, delightful single, ‘Contact High’, which has the crowd at one of its loudest moments of the evening.
Smiling and dancing, Architecture in Helsinki translate well to the live music scene, and they’re a band that are striving to make people dance through some of the catchiest songs on the radio. When combined with the fantastic winery venue, it makes this night undoubtedly one of Adelaide’s live music highlights for the year.
– Dan Gruszecki
