‘Terrific’ is the name Helders has given his solo project which was sprung in to life this week with debut single ‘WeHo yet?’
Matt Helders has yet to bloom as a solo musician, not that that’s to be frowned upon, when you play the drums in potentially one of Britain’s most loved bands ever.
In 2008 he released a DJ mix album titled ‘Late Night Tales’, though it’s a creative plethora of talent, it never quite took off, which probably wasn’t the intention given the pure, passionate musician that he is.
Teasers for a solo release can be dated back to at least 2018. In a grounded interview, Helders confirmed a project of his own was in an embryonic stage, but explained that it was his desire to make a large scope of content before rushing into releasing any of it.
He said: “I don’t want to do it too soon and then regret it, like ‘Oh, I shouldn’t have made that kind of record’. You know what I mean? I want to make a lot of music and then like, ‘Oh, that’s the thing I like about this’.”
There is also the looming conversation of what’s not quite nepotism, but a foot up so to speak, being the drummer for ‘The Monkeys’. The irony of this is that they worked their way up from The grapes pub in Sheffield to headlining Glastonbury on multiple occasions and selling out stadiums with ease.
Despite this he touched on the subject: “I don’t want to do it too soon and then regret it, like ‘Oh, I shouldn’t have made that kind of record’. You know what I mean? I want to make a lot of music and then like, ‘Oh, that’s the thing I like about this’.”
Fast forward to 2025, the year of the reunion, where in any case it seemed destined that the Arctic Monkeys would deliver us news on a tour before the year closed out. But no, not yet anyway, fans of the band will be more than welcoming to this news, despite the track sounding fairly distant from anything Alex Turner would concoct.
The track ‘WeHo yet?’ would be less out of place coming from Daft Punk, as opposed to an indie band from the midlands. The song is an unclouded representation of the diverse talent Matt Helders boasts. The textures are more electronic and synth based, it’s a teleportation to the 80s, a feel good journey through time.
Notably the only account that is followed by the ‘Terrific’ instagram account is Arctic monkeys touring member Tyler Parkford, who was also a part of ‘Mini Musicians.’
We will be getting more music from Helders, that’s definite, but when will it be released, in a fashion true to himself, remains a mystery.
Stream ‘WeHo Yet?’ here.
