Released October 5, 2004 (2004-10-05) Recorded March – June 2004 at Cello Studios in Hollywood, California Length 39:35 (47:56 with bonus tracks) Producer Charlie Clouser, Jay Baumgardner, Ted Jensen | ||
Size Matters is the fifth album by the American alternative metal band Helmet, released in 2004 through Interscope. It is the first new album since the band ended with a bitter break up in 1998.
Contents
Background
Page Hamilton, the band's founder and chief songwriter, is the only original member appearing on the album. Therefore, many purists object to it being called "Helmet" and consider it to be a Page Hamilton solo project. According to Hamilton, John Stanier (drums) and Henry Bogdan (bass) both declined the invitation to reunite.
Despite the purists' objections, the album carries on in the Helmet tradition with Hamilton's trademark staccato sound. The album was recorded as a three-piece with John Tempesta on drums and Chris Traynor (guitarist on the Aftertaste tour) on bass. After recording was done, bassist Frank Bello was brought in so Traynor could return to guitar.
Size Matters had one single in "See You Dead." The track "Throwing Punches" was also included on the film soundtrack for Underworld, and "Crashing Foreign Cars" was featured in the video game Need For Speed: Underground 2.
Music and lyrics
Many of the album's songs and lyrics were inspired by Hamilton's one year relationship with actress Winona Ryder.
Japanese bonus tracks
The Japanese release has two additional tracks: "Black Light" and "Just Like Me." These tracks, as well as "Smart" (a.k.a. "Opportunity"), "Enemies," and "Unwound," were originally recorded as Gandhi tracks, Page Hamilton's previous band.
Reception
Upon release in 2004, the album received mixed reviews from critics and alienated a portion of the band's fanbase. Pitchfork writer David Raposa gave the album a mixed review. He criticized the band's change in sound writing "Helmet attempt to diversify their portfolio, offering dynamics and approachable melodies and other types of listener-friendly capitulations one wouldn't associate with the folks that dropped Meantime and Unsung."
Johnny Loftus of Allmusic gave the album 3 stars and wrote in his review "Size Matters emphasizes for the bloated alt-metal elite what it means to have craft and a little self-control. It isn't necessarily memorable, but as an exercise in measured, even artistic rage, it's classic Hamilton."