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The Helio Sequence

Negotiations (Sub Pop)

Reviewed by Doug Freeman, Fri., Nov. 2, 2012

Fun Fun Fun Fest Saturday Reviews

The Helio Sequence

Negotiations (Sub Pop)

Melt into the Helio Sequence's fifth offering. Opening with the chiming sway of "One More Time," which conjures the Walkmen's charmingly subdued moments, and the dramatic melodic build of "October," Negotiations develops spaciously, expanding with every song until it becomes enveloping. Brandon Summer's warm voice matches the dreamlike swirl of his guitar, while Benjamin Weikel provides a stern rhythmic backbone that booms with a deep subconscious calm. An epic build courses through "The Measure," even as "Hall of Mirrors" echoes too heavily amid the effects. Yet the Portland, Ore., duo delivers a masterful performance of pace and patience, tight and sparse and blooming with grandiosity, as with the transition from the meditating "Harvester of Souls" and hypnotic "Open Letter" to the bursting "When the Shadow Falls," culminating in the closing, encompassing title track. (Sat., Orange stage, 2:10pm)

***

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