August 13 2004
Last updated on January 7, 2010
FROM: MITCH SCHNEIDER/LIBBY HENRY/ KRISTINE ASHTON-MAGNUSON/AMANDA HALE
HELMET ANNOUNCE FIRST TOUR IN SEVEN YEARS; READY TO RELEASE NEW ALBUM ‘SIZE MATTERS’ SEPTEMBER 14 ON INTERSCOPE RECORDS
As HELMET get ready to release their first album of new material in seven years SIZE MATTERS, due September 14 on Interscope Records–the band have announced a return to the road beginning September 17 in Atlanta. This five-week club swing marks their first trek in seven years and they’ll return to some of the venues they cut their teeth in including The Bowery Ballroom in New York, the Troubadour in Los Angeles, the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC and Slim’s in San Francisco, with the idea of “filling the room with a roar,” according to singer/guitarist/founder PAGE HAMILTON in a recent interview with Billboard.com.
This tour announcement coincides with the arrival of SIZE MATTERS’ first single “See You Dead” at radio stations nationwide. “The song is about a relationship that ended in a nasty way,” reveals HAMILTON, who adds that “the lyric was inspired by the line ‘I’d rather see you dead little girl than to be with another man’ from The Beatles song ‘Run For Your Life’ off the Rubber Soul album.”
For the fall tour, HAMILTON will be joined by bandmates CHRIS TRAYNOR (guitars), JOHN TEMPESTA (drums) and FRANK BELLO (bass). Look for them to draw on songs from such memorable albums as Strap It On, Meantime, Betty and Aftertaste as well as SIZE MATTERS. Produced by HAMILTON with assistance from producer Jay Baumgardner and former Nine Inch Nails associate Charlie Clouser, the album is already building a critical buzz.
“…the new album continues the band’s vital, visceral legacy. The songs are filled with jagged, down-tuned riffing, syncopated drumming and acerbic lyrics…”See You Dead” starts with a mesmerizing one-chord rhythm, then busts into a hook-filled chorus and some of Hamilton’s most unsettling lyrics…” (Jon Wiederhorn, MTV.com, July 12, 2004).
“…full of the trademark crushingly heavy riffs and grooves that have gone on to spawn a legion of imitators.” (Jonathan Cohen, Billboard.com, June 9, 2004).
Check out www.helmetmusic.com for the latest tour information and catch the band on the road in the following cities (more dates TBA):
Date City Venue
Fri 9/17 Atlanta, GA Cotton Club
Wed 9/22 Washington, DC 9:30 Club
Fri 9/24 Asbury Park, NJ Stone Pony
Sat 9/25 Hoboken, NJ Maxwell’s
Sun 9/26 Fitchburg, MA WAAF Locobazooka
Mon 9/27 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
Wed 9/29 Philadelphia, PA North Star
Thu 9/30 Rochester, NY Water Street Music Hall
Fri 10/1 Buffalo, NY Showplace Theatre
Sat 10/2 Toronto, ONT Lee’s Palace
Mon 10/4 Cleveland, OH The Grog Shop
Tue 10/5 Detroit, MI St. Andrew’s Hall
Wed 10/6 Chicago, IL Empty Bottle
Fri 10/8 Minneapolis, MN Grumpy’s
Sun 10/10 Lawrence, KS The Bottleneck
Tue 10/12 Houston, TX Engine Room
Wed 10/13 Dallas, TX Gypsy Tea Room & Ballroom
Thur 10/14 Austin, TX Emo’s Austin
Sat 10/16 Denver, CO Larimer Lounge
Sun 10/17 Salt Lake City, UT Club Sound
Wed 10/20 Vancouver, BC Richards On Richards
Thur 10/21 Seattle, WA Graceland
Fri 10/22 Portland, OR Doug Fir Lounge
Sun 10/24 San Francisco, CA Slim’s
Mon 10/25 West Hollywood, CA Troubadour
Thur 10/28 Phoenix, AZ The Brick House
Fri 10/29 San Diego, CA The Casbah
Sat 10/30 Anaheim, CA Chain Reaction