The wider indie rock universe has largely slept on Pacific Northwest two-piece the Helio Sequence, but that should change with its fourth album and second for Seattle stalwart Sub Pop. This confident piece of work is like mannah from the heavens for college rock fans, freshening up loose, rhythmic song structures with a charming lo-fi aesthetic. Little sonic details slip in unnoticed, only to become integral parts of a song (the echoing guitar line in "The Captive Mind," the stuttering bass groove and noisy outro of "Hallelujah"), as Brandon Summers mulls a culture poisoned by disposable commerce and empty promises. Mainly though, it just doesn't get much better than irresistibly catchy tunes like "Can't Say No" and piercing relationship snapshots like "Back to This" ("We were giving up time/We were giving up ties, and everyone knew it, too"). —Jonathan Cohen