New York's noise-rock scene around 1990 was abrasive by design, and Helmet took that abrasion and tightened it into something precise. Page Hamilton, a jazz-trained guitarist, started the band in 1989. After the indie debut Strap It On on Amphetamine Reptile, the major labels came after them in the rush that followed Nirvana, and Interscope released 1992's Meantime. Clipped, stop-start, drop-tuned and played by guys in T-shirts and short haircuts, it went gold, earned a Grammy nomination, and its sound echoed through a lot of the decade's heavier rock. Hamilton is the only constant member through a breakup, a 2004 reformation and a series of lineups since. The most recent album is 2023's Left, and in August and September 2026 Helmet opened Down's North American tour.