It’s been almost 10 years since the first and only time I ever talked to indie band Architecture in Helsinki. I was writing for the college newspaper and trying too hard to look cool. But they didn’t have to try at all. “Why are you guys so fun?” I asked. “We’re from Australia,” they replied.
It was like a time warp when I saw their latest music video, “Dream a Little Crazy”. The setup for the show I saw in Cambridge, Massachusetts, back in 2005, can only be described as a sound laboratory with instruments and objects strung up all over the stage. They’ve now upgraded their lab to appease all senses — wide-eyed and lab-coated, the musicians make masks and mix potions. They scan faces and pour paint. By the end of the video, you can’t help but wonder if they’re actually doing real experiments.
That’s when I realised how far this little band from Melbourne has come. A decade ago, they were just a bunch of high energy hipsters from Australia banging on pots and pans. Today, they’re mad scientists from the future.