Customer Reviews

Com Plex

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Nine tunes of semi-innocent sounding space pop that has nothing to prove whatsoever.Hailing from Porland,OR,believe it or not,this is a duo.Brandon Summers is on guitar and vocals and Ben Weikel is on keyboards and drums.I happen to notice sort of a Beatles/Cheap Trick like melody here.Best tracks are "Just Married Jane",the spell-binding "My Heart",the soaring "Sassafras",their glossy cover of the Beatles "Tomorrow Never Knows"(now,that's class-the way they do it anyway),"Big Jet Sky" and "Demographics".Okay,I confess.'Com Plex' is better than what I had expected.Was recorded in a one-room music store of the two musician's day job.I've caught these guys playing live and if you get the chance to do so yourself,take my advise:bring earplugs.They can probably up and quit their day job now.

I started sending out my bands demo a couple days before I got this album in the mail. It's intimidating to hear a couple of new guys that recorded at the house (much like I have) and they sound this good. I can't believe they're not bigger than they are. It's not just [good] music, its deep, highly creative, and catchy as hell. Some bands do something and you say "Wow, I know where your coming from!!" But with these guys your saying "Wow, I wish I knew where you were coming from!!" I bought this album because of the MBV comparisons, and I kept hearing the beatles mentioned and you do kind of get the sense of Kevin Shields doing Sgt. Peppers, but this album is by no means a rehash of anything I've ever heard. I gotta check out their next release!

I must say I know next to nothing about the Helio Sequence (having just bought their CD at the recommendation of a friend). That said, though, the music here is top notch. There are only nine tracks, but they're nice and long, and each is packed with chewy, nougaty goodness.

Just Mary Jane (Calypso), Transistor Radio, and Tomorrow Never Knows all come to mind as excellently crafted tracks, but I almost feel bad about giving special preference to any given track (they're all my babies, and I love them equally!). Imagine Nero's Rome with an emphasis on psychadellia and de-emphasis on its grungy aspects, fused with the melodic sense and musical genius of the Beatles, all with a really tasteful electronic feel. An honor to listen to.

Helio Sequence? I had no idea how big this group would sound. One reviewer named My Bloody Valentine as an influence. "Interesting," I thought. Another reviewer referenced The Beatles. "Yeah, right," my skepticism intoned. But, you know what? It's true. These guys have somehow, at least to my mind (and ears), captured some amazing, new synthesis of mind-melding guitar psychedelia (a la MBV) and unstinting melodicism (enter John, Paul, and George). What a feat! And the pleasure of bathing in such creativity has yet to let up, day after day...Tell me what you think! (Also, any biographical information on these extraordinary artists, including other recordings, would be most appreciated.)

Two kids perform and record an entire album and put together nine tunes worthy of heavy airplay. This is a truly professional-sounding production with catchy tunes and psychedelic, deep music. The comparison to the Beatles is natural, especially since they do a respectable cover. Very English-sounding.
I'm still amazed at how little-known this record is (but is probably understandable with the small label and little publicity). I expect we will be hearing much more from them, on a bigger label with an even more impressive mastering of their next album. Take this CD to your friends' next party and watch them as they listen to Com Plex. Pity it isn't available on vinyl.

This is undoubtedly the best album I've purchased this year. If you like Mercury Rev, this one is better. It's more creative, more energetic, more out there. It has just the right mix of lyrical melody and drugged-out oddity. All I can say is I hope they're putting out more some time soon.

I actually reviewed this cd for my college station and it was the best cd I've ever gotten to review. The guys are phenomenal! Their songs are so catchy and have all these wonderfully blended sounds that you don't hear from many bands. As sacrilegious as this is, on some of their songs, they're sounds blend in better than Apples in Stereo's. Favorite song: Transistor Radio. The whole album is fantastic.

Remember those times that you heard a random song on the radio and it changes everything forever? I first heard these guys on the local college station one night while driving to meet friends. "Big Jet Sky" turned out to be one of those random songs. Who coulda thunk that 2 guys recording in their apartments could produce so much sound or such a great CD. Think Apples In Stereo recording mentality fused with the style ethics of Pink Floyd, Beatles and (insert your favorite power pop artist here), but better. Sounds swirl, guitars pluck and plunder, melodies merge and drums drive. Just buy this CD. I did.

How did so much talent come out of these Beaverton teenagers? Seeing them live I had no idea that much sound power could come out of these two gentle boys. Half My Bloody Valentine, infused with strong '60s beats and a bit of what I can only call the "Portland Sound". The cover of Tomorrow Never Knows pays true homage, and Sassafras is the tribute. There is a tad bit of muddiness in the engineering, but maybe that's a tribute too. Still a great disc, great band. Watch out.

There's a mixture of fluid and static music in this record that makes it a bizarre cross between Kraftwerk and King Black Acid. Most people don't know who KBA is so instead we'll call it a mixture between Kraftwerk and early Pink Floyd. Throw into that bit of late-Beatles and Blurish Brit-pop. There's a soft electonica underbelly to Helio Sequence which heard by itself is almost trancy. On top of it is wet delay-ridden guitars soaring toward spacerock. Its innovative and gets better with every listen. Its power is in the music and instrumental jams/solos. The songs are not particularly catchy and lack strong hooks -- in other words after listening to the album no songs get stuck in my head. But it is also complex and textured which makes each listening a fresh experience. The album feels a bit restrained as if the musicians are unable or unwilling to let loose or perhaps that they are slaves to their electronica fundament. Check out track #3. That's about as poppy as they get.