''Strap It On'' is the debut studio album by American

alternative metal Alternative metal (also known as alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music that combines heavy metal with influences from alternative rock and other genres not normally associated with metal. Alternative metal bands are often characterized by ...

band

Helmet A helmet is a form of protective gear worn to protect the head. More specifically, a helmet complements the skull in protecting the human brain. Ceremonial or symbolic helmets (e.g., a policeman's helmet in the United Kingdom) without protecti ...

. It was released in October 1990 through Amphetamine Reptile Records, and reissued in January 1993 through

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label based in Santa Monica, California, owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture ...

. Critics considered the album innovative for its explosive, propulsive, and often

staccato Staccato (; Italian for "detached") is a form of Articulation (music), musical articulation. In modern notation, it signifies a note of shortened duration, separated from the note that may follow by silence. It has been described by theorists and ...

riff style which greatly exploited

drop D tuning Drop D tuning is an alternative form of guitar tuning in which the lowest (sixth) string is tuned down from the usual E of standard tuning by one whole step to D. Therefore, where the standard tuning is E2A2D3G3B3E4 (EADGBe), drop D is D2A2D3G3 ...

. It has since become a cult classic in the post-hardcore genre and even influential on the metal scene.

Background and recording

Helmet was formed in 1989 by vocalist/guitarist Page Hamilton after he left the

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

group

Band of Susans Band of Susans was an American alternative rock No Wave band formed in New York City in 1986 and active until 1996. It originally consisted of Robert Poss (guitar/vocals), Susan Stenger (bass/vocals), Ron Spitzer (drums), with Susan Lyall (guit ...

. Hamilton would recruit guitarist Peter Mengede (originally from Australia), bassist Henry Bogdan, and drummer John Stanier. Having not settled on a name yet, Mengede's then-wife Reyne Cuccuro suggested the Germanic name of "helmuth". Having misinterpreted her, Hamilton thought she was referring to the helmet protective gear. Thinking it was "a pretty cool name for a band", Hamilton went with the Anglicized spelling and the band was named Helmet. The band was noticed by Halo of Flies guitarist Tom Hazelmyer, who signed Helmet to his label Amphetamine Reptile Records; the band would release its debut 7" single, "Born Annoying", later in 1989. In total, the album cost $2,500 to make. The album was produced by

Wharton Tiers Wharton Tiers (born 1953, in Philadelphia) is an American audio engineer, record producer, drummer and percussionist. Biography After receiving a diploma from Villanova University (Radnor Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania), he moved to Ne ...

and the band.

Release

''Strap It On'' was released through the independent label Amphetamine Reptile Records in October 1990. In January 1993, it was re-released by their new label

Reception and legacy

The album received positive reviews, with critics praising the band's fresh, raw and innovative sound. In September 1992, the original Amphetamine Reptile release was estimated to have sold 10,000 copies. By February 1995, this figure had increased to 40,000. Amphetamine Reptile Records founder Tom Hazelmyer would later state that ''Strap It On'' kept the label going throughout the 1990s. AllMusic's Jason Birchmeier wrote in his review "The nine-song album is a brief one, clocking in around a half-hour, but even such brevity proves wonderfully exhausting by the time you near the last couple songs. In fact, by the time you make it past 'Sinatra', one of the album's highlights and also the halfway point, slow fatigue threatens as the riffs continue to hammer away unrelentingly and vocalist Page Hamilton's sometimes-tuneful, oftentimes-bellowing shouting grows seemingly further agonized. The overall relentlessness should be a sheer pleasure to those who enjoy the intensity of metal without the clownish clichés yet, at the same time, enjoy the originality of alt-rock without the pansy passivity." In 1994, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' labelled ''Strap It On'' as "relentlessly noisy." In 2006, ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' labelled it and '' Meantime'' as one of "the metal band's two triumphs." Future guitarist

Chris Traynor Chris Traynor (born June 22, 1973) is an American musician, songwriter, and producer, best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Bush (British band), Bush, since 2001. He was previously active in the post-hardcore group Orange 9mm, and h ...

was a fan of the album, and considered it to be "one of the most important rock records ever." ''

Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British music webzine and quarterly magazine that primarily covers rock, punk and heavy metal music. Since 2017, the magazine has been published by Wasted Talent Ltd (the same company that owns electronic music publication ...

'' ranked the album at No. 19 in their list of "The 50 Best Albums From 1990", and stated that the album is "balanced on the centre-point between alt.metal,

noise rock Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise music, noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimal music, minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, a ...

and

post-hardcore Post-hardcore is a punk rock music genre that maintains the aggression and intensity of hardcore punk but emphasizes a greater degree of creative expression. Like the term " post-punk", the term "post-hardcore" has been applied to a broad conste ...

." ''

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several awar ...

'' named the track "Sinatra" as one of the "30 Essential Noise Rock Tracks", and the album as "rough-hewn post-hardcore" and

groove metal Groove metal, sometimes also called neo-thrash or post-thrash, is a subgenre of heavy metal music that began in the early 1990s. The genre is primarily derived from thrash metal, but played in slower tempos, and making use of rhythmic guitar pa ...

. In 2004, the songs "Repetition", "FBLA", "Bad Mood" and "Sinatra" appeared on the compilation album ''Unsung: The Best of Helmet 1991–1997''. The track listing for the compilation was chosen by Page Hamilton. The Sacramento-based alternative metal group

Deftones Deftones is an American alternative metal band formed in Sacramento, California in 1988. They were formed by frontman Chino Moreno, lead guitarist Stephen Carpenter and drummer Abe Cunningham, with bassist Chi Cheng and keyboardist and tu ...

covered the song "Sinatra", with it appearing on their 2005 compilation album '' B-Sides & Rarities''. The song was also covered by the band Livver on the 2016 Helmet tribute album ''Meantime (Redux)''. The album further included covers of "Bad Mood" by Blackwolfgoat and "Blacktop" by Heads.

Track listing

All music and lyrics by Page Hamilton.

Accolades

Personnel

Band * Page Hamilton – vocals, guitar * Henry Bogdan – bass * Peter Mengede – guitar * John Stanier – drums Technical *

– mixing, engineering, production

References

{{Authority control 1990 debut albums Helmet (band) albums Amphetamine Reptile Records albums Interscope Records albums Groove metal albums