HELMET And PRONG Join Forces For U.S. Co-Headlining Tour

HELMET and PRONG will join forces for a co-headlining U.S. tour in May. The trek kicks off May 3 in Atlanta and concludes on May 26 at Baltimore's Maryland Deathfest.

PRONG's Tommy Victor said in a statement: "Finally! HELMET and PRONG on tour together at last. The circle is now complete. rom the years of crafting groundbreaking riffage and rhythmical carnage on New York's Lower East Side, to now, the entities still standing that drafted a generation of sonic assault are about to collide. And getting to share a stage with [HELMET's] Page Hamilton, one of the most influential masters in existence, is an honor for me personally. Absolutely perfect."

Unbeknownst to some, HELMET and PRONG did have a mutual admiration society going. Victor and then-PRONG-bassist Mike Kirkland, in fact, curated HELMET's residence at New York City's CBGB. Hamilton recalls: "HELMET really got off the ground after playing audition night at CBGB in 1989 (I think those were Mondays?). Tommy was the [front-of-house] engineer and door guy was Mike Kirkland. There were many great bands in New York/East Village at the time (SONIC YOUTH, RAT AT RAT R, LIVE SKULL) but most were more in the noise/new wave vein. PRONG had an indie vibe but with a heavy dose of metal. We were basically cut from the same musical cloth though HELMET leaned a little more toward noise and feedback and while remaining inspired by AC/DC's funkiness. We played, Hilly said nothin', Louise told me later we were like ice picks to her forehead but Tommy and Mike said, 'Book these guys now!'"

Hamilton caps it: "We will be forever indebted to PRONG and couldn't be happier to have an NYC reunion tour coming up."

Tour dates:

May 03 - Atlanta, GA @ Masq Heaven
May 04 - Pensacola, FL @ VMH
May 05 - Baton Rouge, LA @ Varsity
May 07 - Corpus Christi, TX @ House of Rock
May 09 - Houston, TX @ Warehouse Studio
May 10 - Austin, TX @ Mohawk
May 11 - San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger
May 12 - Tulsa, OK @ The Shrine
May 13 - Kansas City, MO @ Truman
May 15 - Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room
May 16 - Minneapolis, MN @ Varsity
May 17 - Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge
May 18 - Madison, WI @ The Majestic
May 19 - Detroit, MI @ St. Andrews
May 20 - Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom
May 22 - Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
May 23 - New York, NY @ Highline Ballroom
May 24 - Philadelphia, PA @ Trocadero
May 26 - Baltimore, MD @ Maryland Deathfest

Tickets go on sale February 16.

Having cut his teeth playing with avant-garde guitar icon Glenn Branca and indie stalwarts BAND OF SUSANS, Page Hamilton launched HELMET in 1989, and the band released its debut album, "Strap It On", on the independent Amphetamine Reptile label the following year. HELMET soon became the subject of an unprecedented major-label bidding war, ultimately signing with Interscope and releasing "Meantime" in June 1992.

Although HELMET disbanded in 1997, Hamilton revived the band in 2004, and the group has continued to tour and record.

Even while he band was absent from the spotlight, HELMET continued to exercise considerable influence on multiple generations of bands. Their songs have been covered by the likes of CHEVELLE, DEFTONES, FAITH NO MORE, PIG DESTROYER and SOULFLY, and the band inspired a 2016 HELMET tribute album titled "Meantime Redux". HELMET has also been cited as a key influence on such bands as GODSMACK, KORN, MARILYN MANSON, MASTODON, PANTERA, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, SEPULTURA, SLIPKNOT, STAIND, SYSTEM OF A DOWN and TOOL.

HELMET's latest album, "Dead To The World", was released in October 2016 via earMUSIC.

PRONG's latest album, "Zero Days", was released last July via Steamhammer/SPV as a CD digipak, 2LP gatefold, digital download and as a stream. The disc was once again produced by Victor, with trusted collaborator Chris Collier as co-producer and engineer.