Helmet /Page Hamilton : Classic Or Dud, Search & Destroy.

Ok anyways Helmet rules and Page is OTM here:
"I hear so many bands that, to me, I can't distinguish between them," he said, talking about the current scene. "It's sort of like, 'Insert four guys with tattoos here.' And it's pseudo-hardcore or pseudo-punk rock or emo. It just seems like you get your 'Rock Star 101' manual and fill in the blanks. This music just doesn't interest me at this point in my life."

1. Bands who are influenced by Converge/Botch/Coalesce/Dilinger Escape Plan, but with simpler riffs and a tendency to break up the dissonance with cheesy stabs at melody. Alternating screaming and obnoxious sing-songy vocals. Sound like a cornier Deftones.

2. The more metallic-sounding bands with ripped-off In Flames/At the Gates riffage, also alternating screaming and obnoxious sing-songy vocals.

3. Bands rooted in "hardcore" but unabashedly pop-punk influenced as well. High-pitched, nasal vocals.

Of course none of these categories are exclusive or anything.

"Or how about Finger Eleven, whose name must be a reference to some sort of creepy extra finger that only truly creepy people have. Their song "Drag You Down" has the NIN midtempo march of the slugs thingy down pat. The lyrics sound like stuff Trent Reznor writes down in the middle of the night to help him remember his dreams better: "Teething," "It's biting," "I'm bleeding." And the video itself, much like Spineshank's and a whole lot by other nü-by bands, takes place in one of those haunted machine shops that evoke NAFTA more than they evoke some blasted postapocalyptic vision of decay. Blame it on Einstürzende Neubauten, or maybe Janet Jackson. Or Helmet, whose prescient 1992 "Unsung" video introduced warehouse space, lockstepped dude-friendly Big Black riffs, skater shorts, and Dischordian X-estential vagueness to a generation of future Finger Elevens whose previous delvings into metal consisted of their big sister's Ratt collection. Anyway, Finger Eleven's bass player, like most bass players, has one of the lamest hairdos on earth. And the guitarist is still wearing X-tremely huge pants which everyone will agree are like
so over."

He was in Tomahawk (he's on their first album, anyway) and going back a bit further he played drums on an album by the Mark Of Cain, who sounded a lot like Helmet's Australian cousins anyway.

He's in Battles.

Sorry, but you're an utter dingbat.

If you can't tell the difference between shit like "Prove You Wrong" (the only Prong song anyone other than metal mooks ever heard or cared about) and Helmet you are deaf and musically ignorant.

Prong = Just because your singer was the doorman at CBGBs doesn't make you cool. Face it, you're a 4/4 metal band.

Prong released three albums prior to Prove You Wrong, all of which pre-date Helmet's debut.

You're still a dingbat and obviously have a hard time admitting when you're out of your depth.

or..Downtown Juile Brown!

They're playing a local venue here tonight. 14 years ago they played to a place about fifteen times as big not far away. I don't so much feel old as think, "They've reached their best level."

In every old thread dug up Alex is fighting with someone in a new, very entertaining way.

there are times when i really need a loud, heavy riff-charged assault a la 'meantime'. aside from these times, i don't feel the urge to listen to it all that often.

i'll add that 'i know' from betty is amazing

How many posts and not one mentioning how stunningly beautiful Page Hamilton is?!?!?

i'd like to think i'm more beautiful

certainly not the reason i listen to helmet

It was kind of weird playing 'Born Annoying' (the song) a few mornings ago, sandwiched in between seeing John Stanier kick my head off two seperate times as Battles drummer. Dude's certainly switched up his style over time

Helmet's pretty good workout music.

'betty' really does dip after the first four tracks (which are awesome). way too many tepid, 'nice-enough' snoozers deflating the energy of the thing.

Love exactly two Helmet songs: Impressionable and the 1st version of Born Annoying. Ha ha part is that both come from a demo that AmRep released against the band's wishes. Oh yeah, and they did a swell cover of Killing Joke's Primitive. Other than that, don't give a shit.

'clean' is as good as any of the first four tracks on betty

their best song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y332UtRod_0

still reppin' for 'clean' in june '09

Still reppin' for Aftertaste which is a pretty underrated record IMHO.

Saw Helmet play last year at the Waldrock-festival (which is the second or third biggest metalfestival in The Netherlands), and they were the best band of the day.

He played on a Wire song from Object 47: "All Fours." Not sure he did anything that someone else couldn't have done, but it's a pretty nice track, although to be fair it sounds like Band of Susans with a different vocalist.

what am I missing about this band?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4OKQShgiDk#t=6m11s

fwd to 6:11
http://bit.ly/ajosxb

i've played my tape copy of meantime probably 300 times and it still sounds great!

I just had this memory come back to me that when my family took me to Israel when I was 14 I was playing Meantime over and over again on my walkman and lusting after this girl on the tour bus. Jewish tours suck! Helmet Rules!

Helmet on a Kibbutz. Helmet at Masada. Helmet at King David's Tomb. It was great.

Unsung made the top 100 in the current ILM poll!

http://www.drop-d.ie/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/helmet-meantime.jpg

fuckin the best...

i would be curious to see a best of poll. listening to "so easy to get bored" over and over today for some reason. still sounds amazing!

best of records or best of songs?
cause if it's the first the winner is obvious isn't it?

Helmet on a Kibbutz. Helmet at Masada. Helmet at King David's Tomb. It was great.

― Theodore "Thee Diddy" Roosevelt (Hurting 2), Wednesday, August 4, 2010 11:24 AM (1 year ago) Bookmark

sounds like a line from a Mark Leyner novel.

songs, obv!

id vote in that

Meantime makes me want to pump iron

I’m kind of amazed by how few people are vouching for Strap it On. I still think it’s their one truly perfect album

I listened to Strap It On the other week and it was OK but their run from Meantime through Aftertaste is the good stuff.