Review by Sonny for Helmet - Meantime (1992)

I seem to have inadvertantly developed a knack over the years to avoid a whole slew of bands that others seem to consider as metal 101. Helmet are yet another of those. Now that is a real shame because this is a really good album and I think if I had stumbled across it twenty years ago I may even have proclaimed it a masterpiece. Lots of punky influence go into this alternative metal recipe, but despite the post-hardcore tag I feel a number of the tracks take more influence from some of the 1970's proto-punks like The Dictators, The Stooges, The Heartbreakers and The New York Dolls rather than Black Flag or Minor Threat. I love the riffs, the guitar sound is bang on point and the vocals are extremely well-judged, but what I dug the most about this was the drumming - John Stanier's performance adds that little bit of X-factor to what is already an impressive album. The flow is also excellently judged, the length is just about perfect and the production job is superb, it absolutely nails the band's sound.