There's a whole lot to be said for a person possessing the wisdom to seek an outside opinion. "An attorney who acts as his own defense," goes the old saying, "has a fool for a client." The same goes for bands. Generally speaking, it's not such a hot idea for a group-- especially a young group still feeling out a sonic identity and songwriting style-- to produce its own album.

Enter the producer. Ah, yes, the producer, that enigmatic specter behind the crisp boom-boom-tap, the wicked guitar skronk, and the buttery-smooth fade-out. The producer is usually conceptualized as either the antagonist attempting to impose his serpentine Svengali will on the naïve genius of the hapless band members, or as a fix-all mercenary commissioned to make wine from water. But though these scenarios clearly do occur from time to time, independent bands generally choose someone that sees their grand vision. The idea, of course, is that the producer, with the band's best interests in mind, will set them on the path towards self-realization and help them to exhaust their potential. This is a good thing.

Com Plex is not such a good thing, though, in fairness, it isn't quite terrible. It aptly showcases Benjamin Weikel and Brandon Summer's respectable songwriting skills, though it's more an exhibition of potential than something you'd want to rush out and buy. Sadly, like the self-advocating lawyer, it's an ambitious performance doomed from the start by a lack of perspective.

The opening track, "Stracenska 612," sets the bar a little too high for the eight songs that follow. Raspy guitar feedback, clean, reverbed guitar lines, suggestive, ghostly whispering, and beautiful keyboard sequences braid into one another, making for a truly blissful six minutes. What follows begins to steer things toward the recipe for disaster spelled out in the Helio Sequence's press release: "the band is a unique blend of Beatles-esque melodies crossed with My Bloody Valentine's wall of sound noise layering." Hmm. Uh, sure. Equal parts. Lennon/McCartney and Loveless. Right.

Whatever Helio Sequence is, timid they're not. "Just Mary Jane (Calypso)" is the first of many embarrassing moments on Com Plex, wherein the boys reveal how much they long to be the Beatles. And at times, it can be almost endearing to hear the boys incorporate lyrics like, "Lucy's lost diamonds." Okay, that's a lie. Musically, though, they're still on solid ground.

Until song three. "Transistor Radio" mixes a hackneyed attempt at Revolver-era Beatles with modern British psychedelia. To his credit, Brandon Summer's voice sounds as close to John Lennon's as could be hoped for from a guy from Beaverton, Portland. "My Heart," on the other hand, is far more successful. Beatles-esque flourishes (well...) are filtered through that liquid, delay-heavy production they likened to My Bloody Valentine. But "Sassafras" attempts the same with shoddier results, coming off like some Bono-esque hybrid of Duran Duran and the Swirlies. Still, it's not a bad place for these guys to start-- they'll come around.

Com Plex's crowning moment comes two tracks later when the Helio Sequence lean heavily on the stretchy membrane of Unnecessary with a cover of an old classic by-- take a guess, go on-- yes, the Beatles! "Tomorrow Never Knows," to be specific. Though comparably as vital to the world as the Egg-Wave or unsold Power Rangers merchandise, I suppose they do a fair enough job of it. But, again, why?

"Big Jet Sky" is the second-to-last track and a final chance for the boys to play a breathtaking round of "how sincere can we be before it becomes self-parody, and how self-parodic can we be until it comes around to sincerity again?" Take in a deep breath, and then these lines: "Now is the time to make up your mind/ Now is the time to break these ties/ Now is the time to shut things down/ Now is the time to shut things down." Ringo! Ringo, wake up!

The finale, "Demographics," is Com Plex's second best track after the opener, situating their best material like bookends. And you know what? These guys can actually write a nice tune when they put forth the effort. Their production skills are pretty impressive, too, considering they recorded this album by night, in the one-room music store at which they were employed. Com Plex's two standout cuts are beautiful, heavily electronic, space-pop, which will hopefully be the focus of future releases. Assuming they bury their Beatles record next time out, I'll be the first in line to hear what they've come up with.

-Camilo Arturo Leslie