The American Jean

Helium
Origin	Boston, Massachusetts
Genres	Noise pop, post-punk
Years active	1992–1998
Labels	Matador Records
Associated acts	Dumptruck, , Team Sleep
Past members	Brian Dunton Mary Timony Ash Bowie Shawn Devlin

Helium was an American alternative rock band fronted by Mary Timony. The band formed during the summer of 1992. Between 1992 and 1997, they released two full-length albums, three EPs and several singles.

Under the original moniker of "Chupa," the band's founding members were Mary Lou Lord; Jason Hatfield, Juliana Hatfield's brother; Shawn King Devlin; and Brian Dunton. Devlin and Dunton were both also in the band Dumptruck before founding Helium.Mary Timony, formerly of the band , replaced Mary Lou Lord on vocals and guitar shortly after formation, as Lord was reluctant to use electric instrumentation. Following Lord's departure, the remaining members changed the band's name to Helium.

Timony was known for her , vibrato-less and singing style. The band's record label, Matador Records, likened Timony's vocals to Kim Wilde and Debbie Harry.

Their first release was a 7" single entitled "The American Jean" (1993), which was followed by the 7" "Hole in the Ground". They released their first EP, Pirate Prude, in 1994. Shortly after the release of Pirate Prude, Dunton left the band and Polvo guitarist Ash Bowie, boyfriend of Timony at the time, joined on bass. In 1995, they released their first full-length release, The Dirt of Luck, and played the second stage of Lollapalooza. Adam Lasus produced and engineered The Dirt of Luck, Pirate Prude, and all of Helium's singles up to 1995.

In 1997, the group released the EP No Guitars before releasing their second album, The Magic City. This album featured synths and analog drum sounds, as opposed to their previous guitar-centered releases.

...
Wikipedia