Helium

Chupa to The Magic City

Helium formed in Boston in summer 1992 as Chupa, with Mary Lou Lord, Jason Hatfield, Shawn King Devlin and Brian Dunton; Lord was replaced by Mary Timony, a Washington, D.C. native who had played in Autoclave and moved to Boston for college, and after Hatfield left, the band became Helium as a trio. Devlin and Dunton had been in Dumptruck. Early singles were "The American Jean" / "Termite Tree" (Warped, 1992 or 1993) and "Hole in the Ground" / "Lucy" (Pop Narcotic, 1993). The Pirate Prude EP (1994, Matador) was produced by Adam Lasus, who also produced The Dirt of Luck and all the singles up to 1995. Dunton left shortly after, and Ash Bowie of Polvo joined on bass. Trouser Press called Timony's detuned, lurching guitar playing the band's most distinctive feature, linking it to Hawaiian slack key and African highlife.

"Pat's Trick" came out as a 7-inch on December 5, 1994 per MusicBrainz, and The Dirt of Luck on March 21, 1995 (LP) and April 1 (CD), Matador OLE-124, produced by Helium and Lasus, 44:17. Timony's vocals sit low in the mix with loud crunchy guitars, Pilot Magazine says, a hi-fi does lo-fi production reportedly inspired partly by Dr. Dre's work on Snoop Dogg's Doggystyle. They played Lollapalooza's second stage in 1995 and made the Superball+ EP. The No Guitars EP and The Magic City, with synths, analog drum machines and a Mitch Easter co-production, followed in 1997, and the band disbanded in early 1998 after a US tour.

Timony started a solo career in 2000 and later played in Wild Flag (2011) and Ex Hex (Rips, 2014). Matador reissued The Dirt of Luck and The Magic City with No Guitars in 2017, with the rarities compilation Ends with And, and Timony toured as Mary Timony Plays Helium in June 2017 and February 2018 with members of Hospitality. Paste rated the reissue package 8.4, and Pilot Magazine called The Dirt of Luck the pinnacle of their career. Half-Cocked, the 1994 road movie, featured the band.