most of Helmet's songwriting, but the playing chemistry of the old lineup was undeniable." Blabbermouth.net stated in 2006 that, "the new Helmet offering rises or falls squarely on the shoulders of singer, guitarist and creative wellspring Page Hamilton, who has reshuffled the band lineup once again for this sixth studio outing. But the parade of members through this alt-metal quartet doesn't seem to matter much, as it's Hamilton's voice and riffs that dominate the proceedings." They note that producer Wharton Tiers helps to recapture "the proper raw, distorted edge", however, the review also criticizes Hamilton for "treading the same ground he's covered extensively on the band's early records, without adding anything to the mix." In his July 2006 review, Drowned in Sound's Nick Cowen wrote, "the components that make up the bludgeoning sound that Helmet shot to prominence with, have pretty much become commonplace in metal" and that "Hamilton's singing has taken a bit of a nosedive too." However, Cowen still considered Monochrome be an improvement over Size Matters. Touring In support of Monochrome release, Helmet performed at the 2006 Warped Tour. New drummer Mike Jost left Helmet in late 2006, following the completion of the Warped Tour shows, as did rhythm guitarist Chris Traynor. Aside from Hamilton, Traynor was the last remaining member to have been involved in the original run of Helmet, as he had performed on the Aftertaste tour in 1997. For the late 2006 and 2007 shows in support of Monochrome, Traynor was replaced by guitarist Jimmy Thompson (also known as Jimmy Tee), formerly of the Australian alternative metal band Full Scale, while Jost was replaced by Kyle Stevenson, who still remains with Helmet. Regarding the lineup changes, Hamilton explained to Blabbermouth.net in October 2006, "the difficult thing is that, as we get older, people have responsibilities in their lives, and I don't expect them to be there at my beck and call for the salary that I'm able to pay them. It's hard. It's hard. Chris has a daughter. Mike Jost was on the tour, his girlfriend was pregnant. He had to leave halfway through the tour to go have his son. [...] The shit that we went through we went through on the road. And it's part of the stress of being away from home, and being in relationships back home. And everybody goes through it. I can't — I'm at that point in