Customer Reviews

Born Annoying [Vinyl]

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's good, solid, rhythmic, precise rock. John Stanier is one of the most underrated drummers out there. "Taken" is probably my favorite track on this collection... "Oven" and "No Nicky No" feel a bit like filler, but it's good filler.

Also, the amazon.com reviewer wants to know where "Impressionable" is (and i agree, best Helmet song ever). I've linked to the album that contains it in my "recommended in addition to" link.

If you have read my other reviews on this band, I said that "Strap it on" was one great Album, but this is the BEST I think.

Many fans of Helmet was introduced to them by their album "Betty" (Just like me). You remember the Harmonics, the pleasure? Well forget it on this album. This Album of B Sides is the true Helmet orgin. The tracks are all Unique compared to their more listened to tracks like Milquetoast, Repetition, Unsung just to name a few. I dont think I have ever heard a song quite like the Album's Title Song "Born Annoying", and only Helmet can make it work. The beginning of "Shirley Mcclaine" blew me away the first time I heard it. I looked down at my radio and said to myself "Holy S#%#!" Even the song /Punk sound "Taken" blew me away. The bands Instrumental's (Rumble and No Nicky No) are good songs if you want to beat the crap out of someone.

The only track I did not like was the Remake of Born Annoying. It went to fast, and the Chorus wasnt as good as the Original one. But thats why there is a skip option on CD Players.

If you want to hear Helmet at their prime, pick up this album if you can find it. There is a reason why the Album Label was called "Noise".

So there's the independent label Helmet and the major label one. 'Born Annoying' contains the group's singles, outtakes and other loose ends (but not the song "Impressionable" which was on a comp only, grrr) and is sooo good it just boggles the mind. The production is gritty, the guitars are heavy, the songs alternate between heavy groove and faster, punky songs and there are a couple of covers you might recognize from Killing Joke and the Melvins. Mmmm, let's see. If you are completely unfamiliar with Helmet, that is know nothing about 'Meantime' and 'Betty' and so forth, then this is a terrific place to start since your ears wouldn't have been tainted by the major label stuff (which isn't bad but quite a bit less interesting). That stuff is normal alternative metal. This stuff uses odd tunings reminiscent of Glenn Branca or Sonic Youth yet combines them with heavy, collosal and catchy riffs. I think people overuse terms like "thinking man's metal" but this stuff is heavy, smart and catchy. What else ya need?

I'm not sure how a fan of Helmet's albums "Betty" and "Meantime" could like this album as well. I was first exposed to Helmet when the album Meantime was released and I quickly became a fan. I also grabbed "Strap it On" which I thought was much more rough and sloppy. When Betty was released I grabbed it also and was very pleased with the more structured, melodic, but still very "Helmety" sound it had.

Born Annoying is nothing like Meantime or Betty. It is more like Strap it On with it's rough, dirty sound and the songs seem to have almost no structure to them. The song "Rumble" is a perfect example. Although it is the low point of the album, the rest of it doesn't get much better. Don't look for anything to sound like "Wilma's Rainbow" or "Unsung" on this album.

If you are the type of Helmet fan that thought Strap it On was their best work, you will probably like Born Annoying. If you are the type of fan that thought Betty was their best, like I said, I'm not sure how you could like this one as well. The sounds are very different. Born Annoying comes off to me sounding like a bunch of kids in their garage randomly banging on their instruments. If you are a fan of that sound, then by all means, buy this album.