Betty
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Just know we made liberal use of our speak-holes to discuss HELMET’s third album, BETTY, and the multitude of things we love about them/it (including a tangentional tie-in to Black Sabbath!).
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Betty was released on June 21, 1994
Betty
Tracks
1. - "Wilma's Rainbow" - 3:54
2. - "I Know" - 3:40
3. - "Biscuits for Smut" - 2:53
4. - "Milquetoast" - 3:53
5. - "Tic" - 3:40
6. - "Rollo" - 2:38
7. - "Street Crab" - 3:31
8. - "Clean" - 2:26
9. - "Vaccination" - 3:04
10. - "Beautiful Love" - 2:02
11. - "Speechless" - 2:59
12. - "The Silver Hawaiian" - 2:08
13. - "Overrated" - 2:36
14. - "Sam Hell" - 2:09
Total length: - 41:43
Fire up the grill, throw on some road lobster, porn dogs and hamburgers, and try out some of those fancy stoner banjo riffs as you prepare to JOIN US for a snort laugh or three, because the hills are alive and thriving with the sound of HELMET’s BETTY!
WILMA’S RAINBOW:
It kinda feels like THIS is the snare sound Lars actually wanted for St. Anger (a momentary lapse of gum was probably to blame). A killer opener for sure, what a killer groove.
“The richest junk dealer…”
I KNOW:
One of the coolest (and heaviest) drum intros ever. That buildup to the verse…so angsty. Oh yeah, and that riff going into the breakdown and outro…fucking glorious.
“Shine the Baptist and debark the log…”
BISCUITS FOR SMUT:
Definitely a different kind of Helmet…that bass is so raunchy it’s awesome. Interesting to note that this song is about a dog named Smut that Page’s grandfather had. My grandfather also once had a dog named Smut, but I don’t think my grandmother threw him any burnt biscuits. Somehow this seemed like thinly veiled drug slang related to pornography, but I was way off…
“Cooked too long on high…”
MILQUETOAST:
(Rollin’…)
What a killer way to kick things off. That first riff is so fucking heavy and groovy, but then an even heavier and groovier riff takes over and brings everything to a brutally crushing apex before picking up speed and creating an illusion of dissonantly chiming jazz chords. Definitely one of the things I love most about the Helmet: beautifully crushing jazz.
“Don’t forget what you heard…”
TIC:
Heavy. And angry. Seriously, who knew that jazz chords could be so damn heavy!? This song has some of that same “Meantime” energy, but with greater texture and sophistication. Sounds like wolves howling throughout the outro…
“Loathsome and glib…Habits like self-love…”
ROLLO:
Right out of the gate: WAY more up-tempo. And that fucking groove!!!! Clearly “groove” had already infiltrated the sound of Metal, and Helmet found an advantageous way to exploit it. Just count how many crunchy ball riff changes there are in this song and note how they flow smoothly and seamlessly from one to the next. Brilliant.
“’There’s always a penny earned…another dollar saved…”
STREET CRAB:
I mean, it’s not quite Road Lobster…but it’s certainly awesome.
“Ice the beer, it’s easy to feel good…”
CLEAN:
It’s like stoner metal with more groove. What about “Heavy-Grooveladen-Relaxer-Core”?
“Some passing thought, I don’t know what…”
VACCINATION:
Yay! It’s the hamburger song!! Oh yeah, it’s NOT actually about “Hamburgers” (which is why it’s always important to read those lyrics).
“Humble goals…bad nutrition…Rely on me…There’s one condition…”
BEAUTIFUL LOVE:
A lovely jazz instrumental from the 1930’s…combined with a lot of noisy, jazzy, everyone soloes at the same time “Helmetization” added in for good measure…and noise…and heaviness.
(If you listen closely, you can still hear the original melody in between all that soundcheck cacophony).
SPEECHLESS:
Something about the way Helmet builds and arranges their riffs ensures maximum heaviness and impact. Dig the dissonance of the “guitar solo”…maybe call it “anti-melody”…or an “anti-solo”, even.
“I’d blame someone, but I’ve got you…”
THE SILVER HAWAIIAN:
Definitely NOT the typical “Helmet” fare, but its weirdness equates to its coolness. Definitely (probably) dedicated to relaxers.
“The hour of darkness and the hour of dread…”
OVERRATED:
Heavy and lumbering…if we’re being honest, Helmet is practically Stoner Metal. Just get yourself some Silver Hawaiian relaxers and enjoy the Helmet.
“It’s that pacifying lie that grows now every week…”
SAM HELL:
Now THAT is some seriously heavy, stoner banjo blues action!
“She’s known for making good gravy and cat…”
Show Notes:
(00:01) - #veryhardintro #aboutthehardness #trexclinky #nineeleven #neverforget #alwaysremember #Slayer and #GodHatesUsAll #verySlayer and #Repentless (***HAIL and R.I.P. to the fallen***) / #lightanesthesia / #thisepisodes #beeroftheepisode #ohh #thisepisodesbeeroftheepisode #duclawbrewingcompany #sourme #unicornfarts #sourell #sourale #glitter #brilliantname
(03:28) – Reminiscing to the recent concert experience with #TheSword at the #GeorgiaTheater (and some associated #showmemories #tangentionally connected with that venue) ***And NOW, a snippet from #RickshawBilliesBurgerPatrol #somuchfuzz #PeppyStonerDoom (a #killeropener for #TheSwordASMR) #SativaStonerMetalASMR and the #legendary #impression of #RussellsBurp #preforeshadowingbackshadowingASMR / ***CHECK OUT OUR METAL NERDERY PLAYLISTS ON THE SPOTIFY!!!*** #cantbeloudenough
(08:30) - #grandslam and the #sourcreamandarchives / HELMET’s #sophomoreslam #Betty (#thesecondnewalbum) and a #perfect #metalogy with #BlackSabbath #markthetime #itsmarked / Feedback regarding Betty vs. Meantime (as a follow-up) #whatiloveaboutthehelmet / ***Cue the #ridiculousness #STFUASMR*** / A #Facebook #Messenger #messenge #warmedcockles relative to the #MetallicaPodcast #hahahaha #nomnomnom #morehahahahahahahaha / ***IF YOU’D LIKE TO LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL, GIVE US A CALL AT 980-666-8182***#TheVoicemailSegment #toomanyrelaxers #feedbackpositivity #highroad #always #hail and #thankyou for the #positivefeedback ***EMAIL US AT metalnerdery@gmail.com *** #9806668182ASMR
(15:41) – 06-21-1994 and #TheCrow / #KCQF / The Personnel on “Betty” / #shittyvision #killeropener WILMA’S RAINBOW #readthoselyrics (It’s either a Q or a K and some #qlarification #noteven) / The #covergirl on the #albumcover for #Betty #thehillsarealive #ilovethehelmetcore I KNOW #groovemetal #bigly #genre (Borderline #stonermetal with a #straightedge look) / The difficulty of singing over something you’re playing that’s also in a strange time signature (or #complexicated #syncopated structure). #burpimpressionASMR
(24:42) – BISCUITS FOR SMUT (#smut #thedog #tangentionalalityismness #thankyouforthat) #adifferentfeel #sickbass #grandpabones / MILQUETOAST #rightontime ***See also #TheCrowSoundtrack*** #BuildingDynamics Also of note…a #killerending #layers #lockedin #killergroove #usethoseheadphonesASMR
(31:58) - #incaseyouforgot TIC #cantbeloudenough #workyourpitch / #notasong #acoustramental ROLLO #funky and #technical #groove / STREET CRAB ( #nottobeconfusedwith #roadlobster) #biggulps and #jazz and #theblackdogbrigade #maybe / ***The #PageHamilton vocal style relative to each song*** / #Helmet #showmemory and #flashback to the #OldMasquerade prior to being #regentrificationized #downstairs from #Heaven (in #Hell) ***980-666-8182!!!*** CLEAN #fishfeed and #moodrings #readthoselyrics #boomerang / #gumrage and #TridentVibesWithdrawal
(45:18) – VACCINATION (#canyoufollowthebouncingballs?) #Math and #hamburgers #thehamburgersong #givingcredit (#listentofindout) / See also #TheJerkyBoysMovie for more #Helmet #tangentionalality to #BlackSabbath and #SymptomOfTheUniverse and #waittiltheend #ramjamalamb / BEAUTIFUL LOVE #jazziness and #jazzASMR #soundcheckjazzcore #what #okayturnitoffnow / SPEECHLESS (#heaviness in the #groove) / THE SILVER HAWAIIAN #relaxers #newstrainofrelaxer #BettyGood #comedygenius #noteven #snortlaugh
(54:10) – OVERRATED #ihavenoideawhatyoujustsaid #girlfriend / #dangole SAM HELL #stonerbanjocore #goodgravyandcat #weirdending / *** #ILoveTheHelmet doesn’t follow the same #hashtagbag #rules as #TheBlackAlbum / (#thankyou) ***THANK YOU ALL FOR LISTENING TO METAL NERDERY PODCAST!!!*** #IlovetheHelmetASMR #ILoveTheHelmetExtendedDanceMixASMR #untilthenext #staytuned #WhatILoveAboutTheHelmet ***SYMPTOM OF THE UNIVERSE*** #tangentionalality to #Sabbath / #letitringout #itsallbullshit #theresnomoon