Helmet’s Page Hamilton comments on his work with Institute back in 2005. It’s the first I’ve heard him really remark on the whole situation.
Jim (CWGmagazine): You worked with Gavin Rossdale on the Institute record. I dug it! It sounded like Helmet with Gavin singing. How did you get into producing?
Page: Gavin wrote some Helmet-like riffs, actually, Chris Traynor and Gavin wrote together. Chris has a Helmet influence from being a teenager when Helmet started. I didn’t push [the Institute record] into that direction. Gavin and Chris came to me with those songs. Gavin’s “ Come On Over” was like a lot like “ I Know” off of Betty. I told Gavin that! I said, “Umm… Yeah… Can we not start the song with the same riff as ‘I Know?’”
Gavin kind of laughed and said (Page doing a very bad faux English accent), ‘It was a homage to you, Page,’ and I said, “That’s cool.” It was a great experience. I didn’t want to produce. With rock bands, not including Gavin, sometimes their motives aren’t pure. They want to be stars, and that’s not interesting. Being a musician is. Being a star is boring- it’s the same shit.
Jimmy Iovine had called me and asked me to come in and do a Helmet record and produce other bands. I’m into doing an album, but I don’t want to produce rock idiots. He said that Interscope had 300 artists and that he would find someone for me to work with. A week later, he called me and said that Gavin Rossdale was interested in working with me. Turns out Gavin is a huge Jesus Lizard fan. We like a lot of the same bands, and we completely hit it off. Jimmy said at the end, “I told you that you’re a great producer.” I worked with other bands that are not well known- friends. I realize that producing can be a great process.
For the full interview go to CWGmagazine.com:
http://www.cwgmagazine.com/interviews/2010/07/helmets-page-hamilton/