Get Up! (Helix EP)
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Helix is a Canadian
hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...
and heavy metal band. They formed in 1974, and are best known for their 1984 single " Rock You". The history of the band has been marked by many lineup changes, with
Brian Vollmer Brian Joseph Vollmer (born June 30, 1955) is the lead singer and only remaining original member of Canadian hard rock group Helix. Since the band's inception in 1974, Vollmer had gone from lead singer to '' de facto'' leader of the band, weatherin ...
being the sole constant member and only remaining member of the original lineup. The original lineup was formed by drummer Bruce Arnold, and consisted of lead vocalist Brian Vollmer, guitarists Ron Watson and Rick "Minstrel" Trembley, keyboardist Don Simmons, and bassist Keith "Bert" Zurbrigg. However, their most well known lineup, and the one that recorded "Rock You", was the 1980s version of the band: Vollmer on vocals, accompanied by guitarists Brent "The Doctor" Doerner and
Paul Hackman Paul Wayne Hackman (November 14, 1953 – July 5, 1992) was a Canadian guitarist who performed with the rock band Helix from 1976 until his death in a road accident. Among the hits which contain his playing are the #32 Canadian single " Rock You ...
, bassist Daryl Gray, and drummer Greg "Fritz" Hinz. Although Hackman was killed in a tour bus accident in 1992, the surviving members of the 1980s lineup reunited in 2009 for an album, and the band has continued to tour since 2011. Helix have toured with bands such as
Kiss A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...
,
Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of lead vocalist Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey Kramer, and guitarists Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry and B ...
, Rush,
Mötley Crüe Mötley Crüe is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Hollywood, California, in 1981 by bassist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, with guitarist Mick Mars and lead vocalist Vince Neil joining right after. The band has sol ...
,
Alice Cooper Vincent Damon Furnier (born February 4, 1948), known by his stage name Alice Cooper, is an American rock singer and songwriter whose career spans sixty years. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusion ...
,
Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1978. The group were originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their ow ...
,
Night Ranger Night Ranger is an American hard rock band from San Francisco, California. The band formed in 1982 and experienced a surge of popularity during the 1980s with the release of several successful albums and hit singles. Guitarist Brad Gillis and ...
,
Heart The heart is a muscular Organ (biology), organ found in humans and other animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels. The heart and blood vessels together make the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrie ...
,
Quiet Riot Quiet Riot is an American heavy metal music, heavy metal band founded in Los Angeles in 1973 by guitarist Randy Rhoads, bassist Kelly Garni, and vocalist Kevin DuBrow. The original lineup featured Rhoads and Garni with lead vocalist Kevin Du ...
, W.A.S.P.,
Ian Gillan Ian Gillan (born 19 August 1945) is an English singer who is best known as the lead singer and lyricist for the rock band Deep Purple. He is known for his powerful and wide-ranging singing voice. Initially influenced by Elvis Presley, Gillan ...
and
Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1975 by bassist and lead vocalist Lemmy Kilmister, guitarist Larry Wallis and drummer Lucas Fox. Kilmister was the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band a ...
among others. Their most recent
studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...
is '' Old School'' (2019).


History


Early years: 1974–1982

Helix were formed in 1974 for a battle of the bands contest in
Kitchener, Ontario Kitchener is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario, about west of Toronto. It is one of three cities that make up the Regional Municipality of Waterloo and is the regional Administrative centre, seat. Kitchener was known as Berlin until a ...
, Canada by drummer Bruce Arnold. They were originally a six-piece, consisting of Arnold, lead vocalist
Brian Vollmer Brian Joseph Vollmer (born June 30, 1955) is the lead singer and only remaining original member of Canadian hard rock group Helix. Since the band's inception in 1974, Vollmer had gone from lead singer to '' de facto'' leader of the band, weatherin ...
, guitarists Ron Watson and Rick "Minstrel" Trembley, keyboardist Don Simmons, and bassist Keith "Bert" Zurbrigg, who always wore his trademark
tuxedo Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and North American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal ...
on stage. Their original name was The Helix Field Band, soon shortened to simply Helix. Trembley left after a few months, making the band a five-piece. Soon after, Helix scored some crucial shows as
Del Shannon Charles Weedon Westover (December 30, 1934 – February 8, 1990), better known by his stage name Del Shannon, was an American musician, singer and songwriter, best known for his 1961 number-one ''Billboard'' hit " Runaway", which was covered la ...
's backing band on some Canadian dates. However, the original lineup dissolved by 1976, and three new members entered the fold. Replacing Simmons, Watson and Arnold were guitarists Brent "The Doctor" Doerner and
Paul Hackman Paul Wayne Hackman (November 14, 1953 – July 5, 1992) was a Canadian guitarist who performed with the rock band Helix from 1976 until his death in a road accident. Among the hits which contain his playing are the #32 Canadian single " Rock You ...
, who would both remain with Helix through the 1980s, and drummer Brian Doerner, Brent's twin brother. Brian Doerner only stayed four years, but returned as a member and a guest several times before joining
Saga Sagas are prose stories and histories, composed in Iceland and to a lesser extent elsewhere in Scandinavia. The most famous saga-genre is the (sagas concerning Icelanders), which feature Viking voyages, migration to Iceland, and feuds between ...
in 2005. With new management under Kitchener's William Seip, Helix released two
independent albums The Independent Albums chart (previously titled Top Independent Albums) ranks the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays (EPs) in the United States, as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by '' Billboard'' mag ...
on their own H&S Records, entitled '' Breaking Loose'' and '' White Lace & Black Leather'', in 1979 and 1981 respectively. During the sessions for ''Breaking Loose'', Helix recorded a cover of the Del Shannon hit "Thinkin' It Over", unreleased until the 1999 Helix CD ''
B-Sides The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...
''. Their second album, ''White Lace & Black Leather,'' brought more lineup changes with drummer Leo Niebudek taking over for Brian Doerner.
Michael J. Fox Michael Andrew Fox (born June 9, 1961), known professionally as Michael J. Fox, is a Canadian and American actor and activist. Beginning his career as a child actor in the 1970s, he rose to prominence portraying Alex P. Keaton on the NBC sitcom ...
auditioned to replace bassist Keith Zurbrigg but the job ultimately went to Mike Uzelac. With Zurbrigg gone, Brian Vollmer was now the last remaining original member.


Commercial success: 1983–1989

Changing their image from that of a standard bar band to a more image-conscious metal band, Helix finally signed to
Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...
after being rejected by them three times. In 1983, they released '' No Rest for the Wicked'', with Greg "Fritz" Hinz (ex- Starchild) on drums. This album featured Canadian hit
video Video is an Electronics, electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving picture, moving image, visual Media (communication), media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, whi ...
"Heavy Metal Love", which featured their new look. Under Seip's advice, Helix dropped their T-shirts and jeans in favour of leather clothing in order to stay current. The tour for this album cycle was not without drama. Mike Uzelac, whose drug use had become problematic, left the band to be replaced by a bass player named Peter Guy from
London, Ontario London is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River (Ontario), Thames River and N ...
. Guy was unable to travel to the United States due to a previous drug conviction, and Uzelac came back to finish the tour. When Uzelac had fulfilled his commitment, Mark Rector of Kitchener was hired on bass. He was let go at the conclusion of the tour. With the addition of bassist Daryl Gray completing the band's classic 1980s lineup, they released '' Walkin' the Razor's Edge'' in 1984. It sold over 100,000 copies in Canada, and over 400,000 internationally. The album also included their best known song " Rock You" and a cover of
A Foot in Coldwater A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient ...
's "(Make Me Do) Anything You Want". The band's also released a
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
for the
Crazy Elephant Crazy Elephant was an American bubblegum pop band (music), band noted for their 1969 hit record, hit single (music), single, "Gimme Gimme Good Lovin'". History Crazy Elephant was a recording studio, studio concoction, the Marzano-Calvert Stud ...
cover "
Gimme Gimme Good Lovin' "Gimme Gimme Good Lovin is a song written by Joey Levine and Ritchie Cordell and performed by Crazy Elephant. It reached #12 on both the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart in 1969, and was featured on their 1969 album, ''Crazy Elepha ...
" the same year, creating a parody of the
Miss America Pageant Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 18 and 28. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is judged on competition segments with scoring percentages: ''Priva ...
titled the "Miss Rock Fantasy" Pageant. Two versions were created: an uncensored version featuring semi-nude and topless women, and a censored version made available for the more mainstream media markets like
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
. The ending of both versions of the video feature comedian
Rip Taylor Charles Elmer "Rip" Taylor Jr. (January 13, 1931 – October 6, 2019) was an American actor and comedian, known for his exuberance and flamboyant personality, including his wild moustache, toupee, and his habit of showering himself (and others) ...
seated on a motorcycle surrounded by the band and the models all waving goodbye. It caused some controversy several years after its initial release when it was learned that among the cast of
porn stars A pornographic film actor or actress, pornographic performer, adult entertainer, or porn star is a person who performs sex acts on video that is usually characterized as a pornographic film. Such videos tend to be made in a number of distinc ...
that appear topless in the uncensored version was a then-unknown 16-year-old
Traci Lords Traci Elizabeth Lords (born Nora Louise Kuzma; May 7, 1968) is an American actress and singer. As a 15-year-old high-school dropout, she used Identity document forgery, fake identity documents to enter the sex industry, where she began appearin ...
as "Miss Georgia". (This version was also featured in a
pornographic Pornography (colloquially called porn or porno) is sexually suggestive material, such as a picture, video, text, or audio, intended for sexual arousal. Made for consumption by adults, pornographic depictions have evolved from cave paintings ...
video titled ''Electric Blue 26''.) In 1985, Helix released their fifth album '' Long Way to Heaven'', featuring the
singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...
"Deep Cuts the Knife" and "The Kids Are All Shakin'". The album allowed the band to tour Sweden, becoming the first Canadian rock band to do an extensive Swedish tour. The result was a No. 1 album in that country. The following year, their song "It's Too Late" was featured in the movie ''
Iron Eagle ''Iron Eagle'' is a 1986 action film directed by Sidney J. Furie who co-wrote the screenplay with Kevin Alyn Elders, and starring Jason Gedrick and Louis Gossett Jr.Mann, Roderick"Sidney Furie leads the cheer for 'Iron Eagle'." ''Los Angeles ...
'' and its
soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...
album (this was a completely different song than the track "It's Too Late" that appeared on their second album). ''Long Way to Heaven'' was followed by the release of ''
Wild in the Streets ''Wild in the Streets'' is a 1968 American dystopian comedy-drama film directed by Barry Shear and starring Christopher Jones, Hal Holbrook and Shelley Winters. Based on the short story "The Day It All Happened, Baby!" by Robert Thom, it ...
'' in 1987, featuring the title track and a cover of " Dream On" by
Nazareth Nazareth is the largest Cities in Israel, city in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. In its population was . Known as "the Arab capital of Israel", Nazareth serves as a cultural, political, religious, economic and ...
. One song from that record, "She's Too Tough" was written by Joe Elliot, lead singer for
Def Leppard Def Leppard are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Rick Savage (bass, backing vocals), Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Allen (drummer), Rick Allen (drums), Phil Collen (guitar, ...
. Leppard also recorded their own version of "She's Too Tough" and released it as a
B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...
and on their album ''
Retro Active ''Retro Active'' is a compilation album by the English rock band Def Leppard, released in 1993. The album features touched-up versions of B-sides and previously unreleased recordings from the band's recording sessions from 1984 to 1993. The a ...
''. The recording of ''Wild in the Streets'', done in England with producer Mike Stone, was plagued by extensive takes and remixes. Still, the album went
gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
in Canada, but only managed a disappointing No. 179 on the ''Billboard'' 200 in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. Capitol released the first Helix
compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...
'' Over 60 minutes with...'' at the end of 1989, which featured new and unreleased material as well as the hits. At the end of the decade, Brent Doerner quit the band, tired of the grind of touring. Helix was left as a four piece.


Lineup changes and tragedy: 1990–2003

Helix began the 1990s with ''
Back for Another Taste ''Back For Another Taste'' is the seventh Helix studio album and eighth album altogether. It was also their last album of their original Capitol Records contract. In a fall 1987 interview on MuchMusic with Erica Ehm, lead vocalist Brian Vollme ...
'', which Doerner contributed songwriting and guitar parts to. On tour, Helix brought in their first American member, Denny Balicky. As a touring member, Balicky was not featured in any of their music videos, but he did make significant appearances in the
MuchMusic Much is a Canadian English language discretionary specialty channel owned by BCE Inc. through its Bell Media subsidiary that airs programming aimed at teenagers and young adults. It is headquartered at 299 Queen Street West in what was o ...
hourlong special ''Walzing With Helix'', which documented Helix's European tour with
Sacred Reich Sacred Reich is an American thrash metal band from Phoenix, Arizona, formed in 1985. Since 2019, the band's lineup has consisted of vocalist-bassist Phil Rind, lead guitarist Wiley Arnett, rhythm guitarist Joey Radziwill, and drummer Dave McClai ...
and
Ian Gillan Ian Gillan (born 19 August 1945) is an English singer who is best known as the lead singer and lyricist for the rock band Deep Purple. He is known for his powerful and wide-ranging singing voice. Initially influenced by Elvis Presley, Gillan ...
. Balicky later appeared in the retrospective documentary ''30 Years of Helix: No Rest for the Wicked'' after changing his name to Denny Blake. After this tour, Vollmer and Hackman began writing songs with the intention of Hackman's material being used for the next Helix release, and Vollmer's going towards a
solo album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track or cassette), or digital. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century ...
. In the meantime, '' The Early Years'' was released by
A&M Records A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and functions as a branch of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the label initially operated independent ...
, which compiled their first two independent albums on CD for the first time. Helix toured sporadically during this time, including a special reunion show in Kitchener featuring Keith Zurbrigg and the Doerner brothers. A 1992 Western Canadian tour was booked, with Brian Doerner filling in on drums for the unavailable Greg Hinz, and Brent Doerner filling in for Denny Balicki. It was during this tour when disaster struck. On July 5, 1992,
Paul Hackman Paul Wayne Hackman (November 14, 1953 – July 5, 1992) was a Canadian guitarist who performed with the rock band Helix from 1976 until his death in a road accident. Among the hits which contain his playing are the #32 Canadian single " Rock You ...
, not wearing a seatbelt, was killed when the group's van rolled down a 40-foot embankment after a concert in
Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
. Recovering from the shock of his death, Vollmer regrouped with Brent Doerner once again, and also recruited former Brighton Rock guitarist Greg Fraser. Vollmer took the songs he had recorded for his solo album, and released them as the next Helix record, '' It's a Business Doing Pleasure'' (released on Aquarius in 1993, their Capitol contract now finished). He included the song "That Day Is Gonna Come" as a tribute to Hackman, and the video for the song featured unique
Super 8 Super 8 or Super Eight may refer to: Film * Super 8 film, a motion picture film format released in 1965 * Super 8 film camera, a motion picture camera used to film Super 8mm motion picture format * ''Super 8'' (2011 film), a science-fiction f ...
and
video Video is an Electronics, electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving picture, moving image, visual Media (communication), media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, whi ...
footage In filmmaking and video production, footage is raw, unedited material as originally filmed by a movie camera or recorded by a digital video camera, which typically must be film editing, edited to create a motion picture, digital video, video cli ...
shot by Vollmer on the road over the years. Brian Doerner played drums on the album. Greg Fraser stated that no then-members of Helix aside from Vollmer himself actually played on the album, since it was in fact a solo album, although they were all pictured and credited in the packaging. However, longtime bassist Daryl Gray did play fretless bass on "Love Is a Crazy Game" and sing background vocals on the rest of the album. Brian Vollmer would later call the album: Brent Doerner left the band for the second time after a few shows supporting ''It's a Business Doing Pleasure''. Helix were forced to carry on with a rapid succession of replacement guitar players: Gary Borden (ex- Ray Lyell), Mark Chichkan (ex-Mindstorm), and Rick Mead (ex-Sire), a rotating cast who played at shows when they were available. By 1996, both Greg Fraser and "Fritz" Hinz had departed as well. Brian Vollmer and Daryl Gray carried on with new drummer Glen "Archie" Gamble in 1997, who took on some of their workload such as road managing duties. In order to keep new Helix product in stores, five new studio tracks were recorded and released in 1998 on '' half-ALIVE'', produced by Daryl Gray, which compiled these with live tracks from previous tours. Vollmer also released compilations of hits and rare tracks, as well as his first official solo album ('' When Pigs Fly'', 1999) through his website. The band continued to play live through this period, recruiting new guitar players as they were available. At various times, Mike Hall and Gerry Finn, who were both in
Killer Dwarfs Killer Dwarfs (stylized as KiLLeR DWaRfS) is a Canadian hard rock band that formed in late 1981 in Oshawa, Ontario, and enjoyed moderate success in their native Canada in the 1980s. The band is known for its offbeat sense of humour (all band m ...
, joined Helix on the road, as did Darren Smith, the former
Harem Scarem Harem Scarem is a Canadian hard rock/melodic hard rock band from Toronto, Ontario. Harem Scarem initially (the early 1990s) achieved popularity in their native Canada and Japan. The band was active from 1987 to 2008, and again from 2013 after ...
drummer, who had switched to guitar. Periodically, the surviving members of the classic 1980s lineup would reform, as they did on the ''
B-Sides The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...
'' CD to record three new songs including "Danger Zone", which were again produced by Daryl Gray. This was a song that Paul Hackman had been working on shortly before his death. At the beginning of the new decade, Helix had to endure another major lineup change. Daryl Gray left the band in 2002 due to an increasingly strained relationship with Vollmer, leaving Brian as the sole member from their 1980s heyday. With Glen Gamble's help, Vollmer added three new members to bring some stability back to the lineup: Jeff "Stan" Fountain replacing Daryl Gray on bass, Dan Fawcett on guitar, and Shaun Sanders on guitar. All three had played together with Gamble in London's Buffalo Brothers.


30th Anniversary

In 2004, the 30th anniversary of Helix, the band released several titles to mark the occasion. Their first new studio album of all-original material in over a decade came out, titled '' Rockin' in My Outer Space''. Two compilation CDs were also put together, ''Never Trust Anyone Over 30'' in the US, and ''Rockin' You For 30 Years'' in Canada. These albums were marked by a new Helix lineup, and for the first time since 1974, a six-piece: Vollmer, Gamble, Fountain, and new members Jim Lawson (ex-Cherry Smash, guitar), and the husband and wife team of Rainer (guitar) and Cindy Wiechmann (acoustic guitar and vocals). Vollmer first encountered the Wiechmanns in
Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...
when their band, KAOS, opened for Helix on the ''Long Way to Heaven'' tour. The band played a special 30th anniversary concert at
Brantford Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully indep ...
Ontario's Sanderson Centre. The show featured the current band and past members. Guests included members of the original 1974 Helix lineup (Ron Watson, Bruce Arnold, Keith "Bert" Zurbrigg, and Don Simmons), as well as Brent Doerner, Brian Doerner, Leo Niebudek, and Greg "Fritz" Hinz. The night was released on
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...
as the '' 30th Anniversary Concert''. Released at the same time was the documentary DVD ''30 Years of Helix: No Rest for the Wicked''. Helix experienced a slight resurgence in popularity at this point thanks to a third-season episode of the television series
Trailer Park Boys ''Trailer Park Boys'' is a Canadian mockumentary television sitcom created by Mike Clattenburg that began airing in 2001 as a continuation of his 1999 film bearing the same name. The show follows the misadventures of a group of trailer park resi ...
("Closer to the Heart"), in which
Bubbles Bubble, Bubbles or The Bubble may refer to: Common uses * Bubble (physics), a globule of one substance in another, usually gas in a liquid ** Soap bubble * Economic bubble, a situation where asset prices are much higher than underlying fundame ...
and Ricky discuss the merits of Helix compared to Rush. Vollmer also filmed a cameo during that season which was included as a DVD deleted scene. Helix was mentioned in several other episodes; it's revealed that Ricky especially favors attending, and selling
marijuana Cannabis (), commonly known as marijuana (), weed, pot, and ganja, List of slang names for cannabis, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the ''Cannabis'' plant. Native to Central or South Asia, cannabis has ...
at, their concerts. In July 2005, Vollmer announced that Helix would be entering the studio to record another new album of original material as well as a cover album. The cover album was intended to be released in spring 2006 and consist entirely of
Canadian rock Rock music of Canada is a wide and diverse part of the general music of Canada, beginning with American and British style rock and roll in the mid-20th century. Since then Canada has had a considerable impact on the development of the modern po ...
songs. The tentative title was ''Many Are Cold But Few Are Frozen'', but it never materialized. Finally, Brian Vollmer published his
autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...
, ''Gimme An R'', in December 2005. The book covered the numerous lineup changes and ups and downs of Helix through their 30-year career, along with many rare photos.


Increased activity: 2005 – July 2009

In late 2005, Glen Gamble left Helix to form his own band, The Joys. Gamble was briefly replaced by a returning Brian Doerner, who stayed with the band for several months. With Gamble gone, Brian Vollmer was left to manage every aspect of the Helix organization, from booking tours, to distributing Helix merchandise. More lineup changes ensued in 2006: Brian Doerner again departed, this time to play in Saga. He was replaced by Brent "Ned" Niemi, who was a veteran of the Toronto progressive metal band THD that also featured former Slash Puppet vocalist Mif. Helix toured with this new lineup, most notably opening for
Alice Cooper Vincent Damon Furnier (born February 4, 1948), known by his stage name Alice Cooper, is an American rock singer and songwriter whose career spans sixty years. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusion ...
in Canada, before Rainer and Cindy Wiechmann left amicably and formed their own band Nail. Rainer was replaced on guitar by Kitchener's Rick VanDyk, formerly of Zero Option who had released an album in the early 1990s. Finally, bassist Jeff Fountain left and was replaced by Paul Fonseca. VanDyk, Fonseca, and Niemi had all played together part-time in a
Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
tribute band A tribute act, tribute band, tribute group or tribute artist is a Musical ensemble, music group, Singing, singer, or musician who specifically plays the music of a well-known music act. Tribute acts include individual performers who mimic the so ...
called Sandman. With these musicians on board, Helix began augmenting their live setlist with Metallica's "
Creeping Death "Creeping Death" is a song by American thrash metal band Metallica. It was released on November 23, 1984, as the lead and only commercial single from their album ''Ride the Lightning'' (" Fade to Black" and "For Whom the Bell Tolls", from the sam ...
" riff to segue between songs. Recording for a new album began. In October 2006, the song "Heavy Metal Love" was to be featured on the soundtrack for the
Trailer Park Boys ''Trailer Park Boys'' is a Canadian mockumentary television sitcom created by Mike Clattenburg that began airing in 2001 as a continuation of his 1999 film bearing the same name. The show follows the misadventures of a group of trailer park resi ...
movie '' The Big Dirty'', however, at the last minute, the track was pulled by Dean Cameron, president of
EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...
Canada, as distribution of the soundtrack was being handled by
Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company that is a subsidiary of Comcast ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of N ...
, and not EMI who owns the track. To make up for this, Helix re-recorded "Heavy Metal Love" and included it on their next release, the 2006 EP '' Get Up!''. The original song was still included in the movie even though it did not appear on the soundtrack CD. The ''Get Up!'' EP itself was hyped by Vollmer as "...very reminiscent of the ''No Rest for the Wicked'' album." In 2007, Helix re-released all the tracks from ''Get Up!'' along with four new studio tracks on a full-length studio album called '' The Power of Rock and Roll''. Unlike the EP, this album received both US and UK releases. In June of that year, Helix played the 2007 Sweden Rock Festival. A new song from ''The Power of Rock and Roll'' called "Fill Your Head With Rock" was chosen as the theme song of the festival. Following this, in October 2008 Helix produced their first Christmas CD. Although Brian Vollmer has recorded Christmas songs before on a charity CD for his church called ''Raising The Roof on Mary Immaculate'', '' A Heavy Mental Christmas'' was the first such release from the band. By late 2008, Helix began working on a new studio album, their 12th, following up ''A Heavy Mental Christmas''. These recording sessions coincided with another new Helix lineup: In February 2009, Brent "The Doctor" Doerner joined the band for the third time. Sean Kelly, singer and lead guitarist of Toronto's Crash Kelly, joined as the new bass player. Brent Niemi was replaced on drums by former Sven Gali member Rob MacEachern, who had actually played drums on ''Get Up!'' and ''The Power of Rock and Roll'' in Niemi's absence. Jim Lawson remained on guitar, VanDyk having departed to make room for the returning Brent Doerner. Work on the new studio CD progressed with Sean Kelly co-writing and co-producing. In February 2009, Vollmer reunited the surviving members of the ''No Rest for the Wicked'' lineup (Brent Doerner, Mike Uzelac and Greg Hinz) to record a new version of the
AC/DC AC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock and Heavy metal music, heavy metal, although the band calls it simply "rock and roll". They are cited as a formativ ...
classic "
It's a Long Way to the Top "It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)" is a song by Australian hard rock band AC/DC. It is the first track of the group's second album '' T.N.T.'', released only in Australia and New Zealand on 8 December 1975, and was writte ...
", to be included on a compilation album. Concurrent to the new Helix lineup and CD, Brent Doerner formed his own band, My Wicked Twin, featuring Brian Doerner, Mike Uzelac, and Shane Schedler (formerly of Kitchener's Martyrs of Melody). They released their debut CD in January 2009.


Current and 80s band reunion: July 2009 – present

In an unexpected turn of events, after their July 10, 2009
Rocklahoma Rocklahoma is an annual 3-day hard rock and metal festival held in Pryor Creek, Oklahoma, Pryor, Oklahoma. The festival features 3 official stages, as well as many unofficial campground parties and performing acts and onsite vendors. There were ...
performance, Sean Kelly amicably gave notice that he was quitting Helix to be the new guitar player in
Nelly Furtado Nelly Kim Furtado ( , ; born December 2, 1978) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 45 million records, including 35 million in album sales worldwide, making her one of the most successful Canadian artists. Critics have noted ...
's band. His first date with Furtado was in
Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
in September 2009. After Kelly's departure, Brian Vollmer reunited the surviving members of the classic 1980s lineup: Daryl Gray, Greg "Fritz" Hinz, and Brent Doerner. At their first rehearsal together, Hinz reported, "…it was like we had never left. We all fell right into the groove." In regards to reuniting the old band, Vollmer cited fatigue of the rotating Helix lineups: Daryl Gray was the first member to play live with the band, appearing August 9, 2009, in Lewisporte,
Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...
. Jim Lawson's departure was announced on August 30, 2009. According to Vollmer, "Unfortunately, the long distance between where he lives (
Sudbury, Ontario Sudbury, officially the City of Greater Sudbury, is the largest city in Northern Ontario by population, with a population of 166,004 at the 2021 Canadian Census. By land area, it is the largest in Ontario and the List of the largest cities and t ...
) and where the band operates became a factor in Jim staying with us." Orangeville's Kaleb "Duckman" Duck (of BraVurA), who played on Brent's My Wicked Twin CD, was hired on second guitar. Rob MacEachern amicably stepped down for Hinz to return. The new Helix CD was tentatively titled ''It's Rock Science, NOT Rocket Science!'', before being changed to '' Vagabond Bones'' after a song co-written by Kelly. Doerner, Gray and Hinz all appear on the album, along with Sean Kelly, Brent Niemi, Rob MacEachern and Russ "Dwarf" Graham of Moxy and
Killer Dwarfs Killer Dwarfs (stylized as KiLLeR DWaRfS) is a Canadian hard rock band that formed in late 1981 in Oshawa, Ontario, and enjoyed moderate success in their native Canada in the 1980s. The band is known for its offbeat sense of humour (all band m ...
. The songs were described by Vollmer as music "which harkens back to our roots, yet sounds contemporary." A western Canadian tour was played in October 2009. Brian Vollmer had a cameo appearance in the second
Trailer Park Boys ''Trailer Park Boys'' is a Canadian mockumentary television sitcom created by Mike Clattenburg that began airing in 2001 as a continuation of his 1999 film bearing the same name. The show follows the misadventures of a group of trailer park resi ...
movie '' Countdown to Liquor Day'', released September 25, 2009. Helix also performed at the opening gala of the premier of the movie at the
Halifax Metro Centre Scotiabank Centre (formerly known as Halifax Metro Centre) is the largest multi-purpose facility in Atlantic Canada, located in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The main entrances to the building are located on Brunswick Street, at the c ...
. The reunion tour has lasted into 2010 including both Canadian and US dates. Brian Vollmer also implied that he would like to continue writing for future Helix albums with former member Sean Kelly. In regards to Kelly's departure in 2009, Vollmer stated, "I give Sean my blessings, no worries. As long as we continue to write together, I am happy." On August 15, 2010, Vollmer announced the forthcoming release of two new Helix albums. The first, titled '' Smash Hits...Unplugged!'' contains acoustic re-recorded versions of Helix hits and a cover of the late Canadian singer
James Leroy James Leroy (April 3, 1947 – May 10, 1979)Paul Weber. Retrieved 2013-02-16. was a Canadian singer, songwriter, recording artist and performer. Early life James Leroy was born in Ottawa, Ontario and spent his childhood and adolescence in Mart ...
's "Touch Of Magic". The second album is a compilation called ''Running Wild in the 21st Century'', containing Helix and Vollmer solo material from 1999 to 2010, including two unreleased tracks (" The William Tell Overture" and a new unnamed original song.) It was originally scheduled to be released in October 2010 but was delayed until 2011, due to problems getting permission to include the
AC/DC AC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock and Heavy metal music, heavy metal, although the band calls it simply "rock and roll". They are cited as a formativ ...
cover "
It's a Long Way to the Top "It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)" is a song by Australian hard rock band AC/DC. It is the first track of the group's second album '' T.N.T.'', released only in Australia and New Zealand on 8 December 1975, and was writte ...
". It will be replaced by a new original song instead, causing the delay. In November 2010, Vollmer announced that the band were filming a
pilot episode A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie) in United Kingdom and United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television netwo ...
for a Helix-based
reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...
series. In 2012, Helix toured across eight cities in southwestern/southeastern Ontario for a mini Heavy Mental Christmas Tour. Performing classic Christmas songs but with a twist of heavy metal, and they played their hit songs such as "Rock You", "Heavy Metal Love" and their own song "All I Want for Christmas... Is the Leafs to Win the Cup". Currently, the band is playing in bars/casinos across Canada, and they are working on a new album, which is due for release in 2023. Drummer Greg "Fritz" Hinz died of cancer on February 16, 2024, at the age of 68.


Outside Helix

Brent and Brian Doerner maintain My Wicked Twin as an ongoing project alongside their main bands, Helix, and Crisis What Crisis, a
Supertramp Supertramp were a British rock band formed in London in 1970. Marked by the individual songwriting of founders Roger Hodgson (vocals, keyboards and guitars) and Rick Davies (vocals and keyboards), the group were distinguished for blending p ...
tribute band. Brian Vollmer currently teaches the classical vocal technique,
Bel canto , )—with several similar constructions (, , , pronounced in English as )—is a term with several meanings that relate to Italian singing, and whose definitions have often been misunderstood. ''Bel canto'' was not only seen as a vocal technique ...
, in
London, Ontario London is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River (Ontario), Thames River and N ...
, as well as singing classical music at weddings and funerals throughout southern Ontario. He has given vocal lessons to Mercedes Lander of the heavy metal band
Kittie Kittie is a Canadian heavy metal music, heavy metal band from London, Ontario. The band was formed in 1996 by guitarist Fallon Bowman and drummer Mercedes Lander, with guitarist and vocalist Morgan Lander and bassist Tanya Candler joining the ...
who also hail from London. His wife Lynda helps with the running of the Helix business from their home, which they have dubbed "Planet Helix". "Planet Helix" was featured in a 2007 episode of
MTV Cribs ''MTV Cribs'' (also known as ''Cribs'') is an American documentary television show that originated on MTV and features tours of the private homes of celebrities. It originally aired from 2000 to 2010. In 2017, MTV produced short-form episodes of ...
.


Band members

Current members *
Brian Vollmer Brian Joseph Vollmer (born June 30, 1955) is the lead singer and only remaining original member of Canadian hard rock group Helix. Since the band's inception in 1974, Vollmer had gone from lead singer to '' de facto'' leader of the band, weatherin ...
– lead vocals, cowbell *Daryl Gray – bass, guitar, keyboards, percussion, backing vocals *Mark Chichkan – guitar, backing vocals *Chris Julke – guitar *Jamie Constant - drums


Discography


Albums


Studio albums

*'' Breaking Loose'' (1979) *'' White Lace & Black Leather'' (1981) *'' No Rest for the Wicked'' (1983) *'' Walkin' the Razor's Edge'' (1984) *'' Long Way to Heaven'' (1985) *''
Wild in the Streets ''Wild in the Streets'' is a 1968 American dystopian comedy-drama film directed by Barry Shear and starring Christopher Jones, Hal Holbrook and Shelley Winters. Based on the short story "The Day It All Happened, Baby!" by Robert Thom, it ...
'' (1987) *''
Back for Another Taste ''Back For Another Taste'' is the seventh Helix studio album and eighth album altogether. It was also their last album of their original Capitol Records contract. In a fall 1987 interview on MuchMusic with Erica Ehm, lead vocalist Brian Vollme ...
'' (1990) *'' It's a Business Doing Pleasure'' (1993) *'' Rockin' in My Outer Space'' (2004) *'' The Power of Rock and Roll'' (2007) *'' A Heavy Mental Christmas'' (2008) *'' Vagabond Bones'' (2009) *'' Bastard of the Blues'' (2014) *'' Old School'' (2019)


Live albums

*''Live at the Marquee'' (1984) (Promotional live EP) *'' half-ALIVE'' (1998) *'' Live! in Buffalo'' (2001)


Compilation albums

*'' Over 60 minutes with...'' (1989) *'' The Early Years'' (1991) (Reissue of first two albums) *'' Deep Cuts: The Best Of'' (1999) *''
B-Sides The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...
'' (1999) *''Never Trust Anyone Over 30'' (2004) (US Compilation) *''Rockin' You for 30 Years'' (2004) (Canadian Compilation) *'' Smash Hits...Unplugged!'' (2010) *''Best of 1983-2012'' (2013) *''Rock It Science'' (2016) *''Icon'' (2018) *''Eat Sleep Rock'' (2020)


EPs

*''Get Up! (2006)'' *'' Skin in the Game'' (2011)


Unofficial compilation albums

* Vixen and Helix: ''Back 2 Back Hits'' (2000) (Split compilation CD from
EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...
Special Products)


Singles

* (1979) Don't Hide Your Love / You're a Woman Now * (1979) Billy Oxygen / Crazy Woman * (1981) It's Too Late / Women Whiskey & Sin * (1983) Does a Fool Ever Learn / Never Want to Lose You * (1983) Don't Get Mad Get Even / Check Out the Love * (1983) Heavy Metal Love / No Rest for the Wicked * (198?) Everybody Pays The Price / Breaking Loose erman maxi single* (1984) Rock You / You Keep Me Rockin' * (1985) (#27 CAN) * (1984)
Gimme Gimme Good Lovin' "Gimme Gimme Good Lovin is a song written by Joey Levine and Ritchie Cordell and performed by Crazy Elephant. It reached #12 on both the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart in 1969, and was featured on their 1969 album, ''Crazy Elepha ...
/ When the Hammer Falls * (1984) (Make Me Do) Anything You Want / Feel the Fire* (1985) Deep Cuts The Knife / Bangin' Off-A-The Bricks (#40 CAN) * (1985) Deep Cuts The Knife / Bangin' Off-A-The Bricks (#66 CAN) * (1985) The Kids Are All Shakin' / House On Fire (#75 CAN) * (1986) It's Too Late / Jaws of the Tiger * (1987) Wild In the Streets / Kiss It Goodbye * (1987) Dream On / What Ya Bringin' to the Party? * (1990) The Storm (#74 CAN) * (1990) Running Wild In the 21st Century * (1990) Good to the Last Drop / S-E-X Rated (#27 CAN) * (1993) That Day Is Gonna Come * (1998) The Same Room * (1999) I'm A Live Frankenstein rian Vollmer solo* (2007) Fill Your Head With Rock * (2009) Vagabond Bones * (2009) When the Bitter's Got The Better Of You * (2009) Monday Morning Meltdown * (2009) Make 'Em Dance * (2012) All I Want for Christmas... Is the Leafs to Win the Cup * (2017) The Devil is Having A Party Tonight / The Tequila Song * (2022) Not My Circus


Music videos

* (1983) Don't Get Mad Get Even * (1983) Heavy Metal Love * (1984) Rock You * (1984)
Gimme Gimme Good Lovin' "Gimme Gimme Good Lovin is a song written by Joey Levine and Ritchie Cordell and performed by Crazy Elephant. It reached #12 on both the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart in 1969, and was featured on their 1969 album, ''Crazy Elepha ...
* (1984) (Make Me Do) Anything You Want * (1985) The Kids Are All Shakin' * (1985) Deep Cuts the Knife * (1987) Wild In the Streets * (1987) Dream On * (1990) Good To The Last Drop * (1990) Running Wild In the 21st Century * (1990) The Storm * (1993) That Day Is Gonna Come * (1998) The Same Room ilmed but unreleased* (1999) I'm a Live Frankenstein rian Vollmer solo* (2007) Fill Your Head With Rock * (2009) Vagabond Bones * (2009) When the Bitter's Got the Better of You * (2009) Monday Morning Breakdown * (2009) Make 'Em Dance * (2012) All I Want for Christmas... Is the Leafs to Win the Cup * (2013) Champagne Communist * (2016) (Gene Simmons Says) Rock is Dead * (2020) Eat Sleep Rock * (2020) The Tequila Song


DVD and VHS

*''S.E.X. Rated'' (DVD 2001, VHS 1991) *'' 30th Anniversary Concert'' (DVD 2004) *''30 Years of Helix: No Rest for the Wicked'' (DVD 2004)


Non-album tracks and solo albums


Non-album tracks

*
Original soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured ...
: ''
Iron Eagle ''Iron Eagle'' is a 1986 action film directed by Sidney J. Furie who co-wrote the screenplay with Kevin Alyn Elders, and starring Jason Gedrick and Louis Gossett Jr.Mann, Roderick"Sidney Furie leads the cheer for 'Iron Eagle'." ''Los Angeles ...
'' (1986) - featuring "It's Too Late", later released on the Helix compilation CD '' Deep Cuts: The Best Of''. *"S.E.X. Rated" (1990) - B-side on the "Good to the Last Drop" cassette single only. This recording, thus far only released on the cassette B-side, is a completely different recording than the one on the ''B-Sides'' CD. According to lead vocalist Brian Vollmer, there are currently no plans to re-release this rare version which, unlike the ''B-Sides'' version, includes a performance by late guitarist
Paul Hackman Paul Wayne Hackman (November 14, 1953 – July 5, 1992) was a Canadian guitarist who performed with the rock band Helix from 1976 until his death in a road accident. Among the hits which contain his playing are the #32 Canadian single " Rock You ...
. *Various artists - ''Got Ya Covered!!'' (1996) - featuring Helix's cover of "Set Me Free" by
Sweet Sweetness is a basic taste most commonly perceived when eating foods rich in sugars. Sweet tastes are generally regarded as pleasurable. In addition to sugars like sucrose, many other chemical compounds are sweet, including aldehydes, ketones, ...
. This was a compilation of independent artists from
London, Ontario London is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River (Ontario), Thames River and N ...
. The Helix lineup on this song includes only one actual Helix member, Brian Vollmer himself, backed by members of the band S.F.H. *Various artists - ''
Sweden Rock Festival Sweden Rock Festival is a rock festival outside the town of Sölvesborg in Blekinge in southern Sweden. The festival offers the best possible mix of classic rock, hard rock, metal, blues and related genres. The first version of the festival, k ...
2005'' (2005) - featuring live version of " Rock You", and the only official recording by the Vollmer/Weichmann/Weichmann/Lawson/Fountain/Brian Doerner lineup.


Solo albums

*Vollmer - '' When Pigs Fly'' (1999) - solo album by
Brian Vollmer Brian Joseph Vollmer (born June 30, 1955) is the lead singer and only remaining original member of Canadian hard rock group Helix. Since the band's inception in 1974, Vollmer had gone from lead singer to '' de facto'' leader of the band, weatherin ...
. *''Raising the Roof on Mary Immaculate'' (2005) - charity CD featuring Brian Vollmer and Cindy Wiechmann. * Brent Doerner's Decibel - ''Brent Doerner's Decibel'' (2006) - solo album by Brent Doerner. * My Wicked Twin - ''Decibel Music'' (2009) - includes three past/present Helix members in Brent & Brian Doerner, and Mike Uzelac going under the name "Uzi".


References


External links


Official Helix websiteOfficial Brent & Brian Doerner websiteBio at CanadianBands.com
CanConRox entry
thecanadianencyclopedia.ca entry
* * {{Authority control 1974 establishments in Ontario Canadian heavy metal musical groups Canadian glam metal musical groups Canadian hard rock musical groups Musical groups established in 1974 Musical groups from Kitchener, Ontario