Helmet releases LEFT

earMUSIC is thrilled to announce the long-awaited release of "LEFT", the upcoming album by the iconic rock band Helmet. After the critically acclaimed "Dead to the World" in 2016, Helmet is back with their signature blend of heavy, riff-loaded rock and evocative lyrics that have resonated with fans worldwide for over three decades.

"LEFT" sees Helmet – comprising frontman Page Hamilton, drummer Kyle Stevenson, guitarist Dan Beeman, and bassist Dave Case – carve out a musical landscape that is taut, muscular, and direct. Hamilton’s lead guitar lines feel like everything from downed power lines arcing to exploding resistors in shortwave radios. On "LEFT" every snare crack hits like gunfire, every solo seemingly a manifestation of rabies-induced psychosis. Guided by Hamilton alongside co-producers Jim Kaufman and Mark Renk, and mastered by Howie Weinberg, the 11 songs on the new album are leaner and meaner in their execution than previous aural throwdowns. "LEFT" is powered by unbridled determination, a renewed sense of purpose and a desire to create more new dialects within the musical language Hamilton invented via his use of drop-D tuning.

In the late ‘80s, Helmet’s straightforward hard rock stirred the American underground. The band’s 1989 debut "Strap It On" was bold enough to detonate the minds of hardcore lifers, noise-rock aficionados and metalheads whiplashed by the density of Hamilton’s riffing. Helmet proceeded to take on all comers with their Gold-certified album "Meantime". The original lineup would excel over the course of 10 years, recording two more albums, 1994’s "Betty" and 1997’s "Aftertaste" before adjourning in 1998. By that time, Hamilton’s aesthetic had rubbed off on many bands from bona fide metal units and the then-burgeoning nu-metal scene. After a few years away, Hamilton reformed the band in 2004 with all new members, recording such reputation-fortifying releases as "Size Matters" (2004), "Monochrome" (2006), "Seeing Eye Dog" (2010) and "Dead To The World" (2016).

As anticipation builds, Helmet prepare to embark on the "LOOK LEFT" tour in support of the album, bringing their powerful performances to stages across the USA and Europe from September until December.

18/11/2023 Trix, Antwerp