Helmet

Starting the New Year with a bang, HELMET, purveyors of monolithic rock, will be headlining a series of shows throughout California this month. Having just wrapped up dates on the first leg of the Guns N' Roses North American tour, HELMET isn't slowing down any. Touring in support of their most recent release, Monochrome, the band's California swing includes the following stops:

Tue-Jan-16 Sacramento - The Boardwalk

Wed-Jan-17 San Francisco - Slim's

Sat-Jan-20 San Luis Obispo - Downtown Brew

Wed-Jan-31 Los Angeles - Troubadour

Thu-Feb-01 Los Angeles - Troubadour

Fronted by singer/guitarist Page Hamilton, HELMET, who headlined last summer's Warped Tour, has seen his band come full circle over the past 12 months to the sonic template that cemented the group as one of the primary forefathers of the post-hardcore/punk genre.

Hamilton formed HELMET in New York City in 1989. The group originally signed to Amphetamine Reptile Records and released their first full-length album, Strap It On, in 1991. Interscope Records signed the band in 1992. Monochrome is HELMET's first release for Warcon Records, one of the leading post-hardcore/punk labels in the industry today.

HELMET's catalog also includes Betty (1994) Aftertaste (1996) and Size Matters, (2004). HELMET's forward fusion of metal, punk, indie-rock and jazz sparked a new brand of metal, crossing all traditional music boundaries, paving the way for bands like Chevelle, Deftones, Killswitch Engage, Norma Jean and Silverchair, among many others. The New York Times called HELMET "a band that made important connections between indie-rock and metal…" (September 12, 2004).