Helmet - Seeing Eye Dog
Work Song
Grungy Alternative Metal
10 songs (37:51)
Release year: 2010
Helmet
Reviewed by Khelek

I've been listening to Helmet for close to ten years now and have heard their sound progress from the anger-driven style of the early 90s to the groovier, more melodic tunes from the 2000s. In that time that band has gone through a couple of complete lineup changes with frontman Page Hamilton being the only constant member. Fortunately this did not stop the band's music from remaining consistently great, and 2006's Monochrome was no exception, though in my opinion not quite at the same level that the band was in the 90s. Four years later we have Seeing Eye Dog, a collection of ten songs that follows the same pattern of many bands that age well, but don't necessarily get better with age. While this album does have some excellent songs, those who are familiar with Helmet's past work will know that this music is nothing new and simply does not stand up to the quality of their past releases.

I really like the first track So Long; it has the feel of older, mid to late 90s Helmet with aggressive vocals, and guitars that are similarly strong and choppy. The title track sounds more similar to their more recent work, and it also feels like I've heard it before. It's a decent track, but it just feels like its been done before, so it's not all that interesting to me because I've listened to their past albums so many times. The album seems to calm down more as it goes on, the guitars get a bit slower and Hamilton's singing gets less gravelly and less aggressive; this is especially apparent with the fourth track, LA Water, which also incorporates some interesting cello work. I have always liked Helmet's music because even their slower songs incorporate a sort of loud, in-your-face quality. The strong vocals of Hamilton definitely contribute to this, but the guitar work is also top-notch with plenty of catchy, distorted riffs as always. In Person continues with more melody and an energetic verse to contrast the more melodic chorus, which I really like. The only thing that doesn't quite fit for me is the screeching guitar solo, but this is still a strong track. Morphing starts off even slower with some electronic and symphonic elements coming in. It's pretty long for an instrumental and doesn't really do anything for me; I found myself wondering when the actual song was going to start. However this leads into one of my favorites from the album, White City. It's another relatively downbeat track that keeps the heavy riffs going but infuses plenty of melody with the guitar lead and Hamilton's clean vocals. The screeching guitars create a contrast again here, but this time they don't seem as out of place, perhaps they are lower in the mix. This is followed by something even more unexpected, an excellent cover of The Beatles classic And Your Bird Can Sing. The melodic guitar lead is executed perfectly and the smooth vocals, harmonized at times as a nod to old school rock bands, are also superb. She's Lost chugs in for the final track, building up until the vocals come in. For me it's one of the weaker tracks on the album as it's yet another song that I feel like I've heard before, and the unnecessarily lengthy intro bores me instead of building tension, as I think was the intent.

At the end of the day this is another relatively solid Helmet release that is quite listenable, although it is mostly the same thing that band has been doing for the past couple albums. There's a pretty good mix of slower and more aggressive tracks, with the band leaning more towards the laid-back attitude this time, but ultimately there are just too many things that have been done over and over again. I honestly expected more from this album and I almost feel like it was written and produced simply to satiate fans yearning for a new release. Unfortunately this album as a whole doesn't sound all that new to me, speaking as someone quite familiar with their entire discography. I just don't think it has the same heart and energy put into it as any of the past albums, which is understandable in light of the many line-up changes and frontman Page Hamilton's involvement with so many other projects, but it's no less disappointing to me. In the end, if you're an older Helmet fan you'll probably want to check this out for the handful of great songs here, but don't expect another Meantime or Aftertaste. If you're a new fan you'll probably find this album to be good, but listening to their older work will reveal that this band has lost some of the energy they used to have.

Killing Songs :
So Long, LA Water, White City, And Your Bird Can Sing
Khelek quoted 72 / 100
Other albums by Helmet that we have reviewed:
Helmet - Aftertaste reviewed by Khelek and quoted 95 / 100
Helmet - Monochrome reviewed by Khelek and quoted 90 / 100
Helmet - Size Matters reviewed by Khelek and quoted 89 / 100
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