After the huge success of their first remix album, “The Hard Road: Restrung,” South Australian hip-hop group The Hilltop Hoods have delivered, as well as announcing their most ambitious tour yet, to begin in April this year.
“Drinking from the Sun, Walking Under Stars Restrung” is a combination of remixes from their two most recent albums, “Drinking from the Sun” and “Walking Under Stars,” both of which are number 1 platinum records. The album also includes several original songs, including single “Higher” and second single “1955.”
For this album, the group collaborated with 32-piece Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and the 20 piece Adelaide Chamber Singers Choir. During the tour, the Hoods will be playing with orchestras from around Australia, and accompanied by more than 50 people on-stage. This was no simple endeavor, as the band said in an interview to Triple J:
“It’s obviously well out of our comfort zone, working with classically trained musicians. And they’re extremely good at what they do, they just walk in and read it off the chart and play it perfectly almost first time.”
Composer Jamie Messenger’s collaboration with Hilltop Hoods enhanced the songs, rather than making them unrecognizable. The orchestra complements the songs, without attempting to dominate them.
Singles “Higher” and “1955” are both excellent additions to the Hoods’ repertoire. “Higher” features the vocals of James Chatburn, an up and coming singer whom the band met through the Hilltop Hoods Initiative, which works with APRA AMCOS to give one artist or band $1000 to release a debut album. Of the program, Matt Lambert, otherwise known as Suffa, said:
“Hip hop has been so good for us and so good to us that we feel like we want to give back. Apart from that, we’ve seen how having a career in music can change your life and we hope and want that experience for other people too,”
“Higher” was extremely successful on release, reaching number 9 on international charts and reaching number 1 most added to Australian radio. The classical element of the piano is a gentle introduction to the song, and contrasts beautiful with the harsher sounding vocals. Percussion’s important role is emphasised in moments of near solitude, accompanied only by vocals, and resonates throughout the song through the continuous rhythm seemingly created by clapping hands. The clapping gives a certain festival vibe to the song, befitting a band that has found a home in some of the biggest festivals Australia has to offer, including Groovin the Moo, and Falls Festival.
“1955” features 2012 Triple J Unearthed High finalist Montaigne, and the spoken word of Brisbane beatboxer Tom Thum. According to Stuffa, the song celebrates small towns, like the one he was raised in in South Australia. Inspired by comedian Dylan Moran, who, in his opening line of his Adelaide show, said he had always wanted to visit Adelaide because he wanted to know what 1955 was like, the song encapsulates an olden day feel, while keeping with the modern hip-hop style of the Hoods. Lambert loved the concept introduced by Moran, because his home really did feel like it was in its own little era, and the song celebrates that feeling. Tom Thum appears in the guise of a scratchy, vintage radio, infusing the concept of a regional townwith life, and leaving the image in your head of a 1955 family out in regional Australia. Montaigne’s powerful, intentionally tremulous voice, warbles almost like it is glitching between the past and present.
Getting to the ‘restrung’ portion of the album, and the overall tone takes a more theatrical, dramatic turn. They were not afraid to experiment, and contrast a series of unlikely orchestral instruments with the songs.
“Drinking from the Sun” originally created texture through use of strings, inserting the tambourine in sections to add another layer to the arrangement, and in parts paired the strings with turntable rips. Though deriving from completely different genres, the combination is electrifying. In the ‘restrung’ version, a more ominous tone is conveyed by a choir, which takes precedence over the original strings. Vocals are more pronounced, and the quickened tempo gives a sense of urgency which suits the song. It is an unusual move, but makes a dynamic change to the song whilst staying true to its roots.
Another of the Hoods’ most successful singles, “I Love It ft. Sia” is radically ‘restrung.’ The emphatic percussion and strings are softened by a change in string composition that gives the song a much more classical tone, and the slightly dissonant, carefree vocals of Sia are harmonized beautifully.
The catchy, simple beat of “Cosby Sweater” completely changes, most noticeably during the intro when an eclectic mix of orchestral instruments, including trumpets, and flutes, makes the song sound more like Gotye than the Hoods. Not that this is a drawback, as the arrangement seamlessly flows into an exciting accompaniment to the vocals. Unlike the original, the instrumental arrangement is the star of the piece. This is the only track in which the arrangement is slightly overdone, but it is still and extremely enjoyable track.
“Speaking in Tongues” was always going to be a challenge, as the ‘restrung‘ version needed to dynamically alter the song, while simultaneously allowing its message to remain strong. Interestingly, this was achieved through substitution, rather than addition, of instruments. The choppy radio intro is replaced by a choir, followed by brass and woodwind instruments almost mirroring the original arrangement. Flutes, clarinets, some brass, give a lighter layer to the verse and chorus, and feature artist Charlie 2na’s bridge is more upbeat. Arpeggios and scales add a cinematic edge to the story, an epic undertone.
The moody, bass tones in “Lights Out” were replaced with a female choir singing in a high key, and solemn, eerie piano chords which still tugged the heartstrings. The most entertaining feature of this ‘restrung’ song was how the angry, passionate vocals were supported by orchestral instruments. High pitched notes thrown in from orchestra did not lessen the violent concept, but added a theatrical edge, as if during a fight scene in a play when the music follows the moves of the characters.
“Live and Let Go” introduced the harp to hip-hop, orchestrating a delicate intro to the song. Added vibrato, played by strings, were an insightful addition which expertly exposed the vulnerability of the singer, and again added that theatrical element that was common in this album. The angelic voices of a female choir accompanying lyrics “I can get through this, I can get through this” were an emotive, and effective conclusion.
Finally, “Walking Through the Dark” demonstrated the subtlety of which an orchestra is capable. It is the best example of this orchestra aiming to complement, rather than dominate, each ‘restrung’ song. The light touch of woodwind and brass instruments resulted in a more ornate arrangement, romanticizing the lyrics while they remained the focus of the song.
“Drinking from the Sun, Walking Under Stars Restrung” is a beautifully composed album, both musically and strategically. As well as showcasing the musical prowess of the Hilltop Hoods and orchestral composer Jamie Messenger, this album makes many of the songs more approachable for those that may not be a fan of straight hip-hop. It will be interesting to see how this album is incorporated into the Hoods’ upcoming tour, in terms of the originals that will be swapped out for the ‘restrung’ version. Regardless, it is doubtful that fans will complain.
8/10
