Sound Republic: Interviews

Hilltop Hoods

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By Cara Williams
10 July 2007

Cara Williams catches up with Pressure from the Hilltop Hoods and chats about the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Byron Bay and the Macquarie Dictionary

The 7^th annual Splendour in the Grass festival is fast approaching, returning to its home in Byron Bay on Saturday 4^{th &} Sunday 5^th August. Boasting a colossal line up, the sold out festival includes the likes of Powderfinger, Arctic Monkeys, Bloc Party, Lily Allen, Damien Rice, Spiderbait, the Shins, the Klaxons, Gotye, Ash and much more. After an enormous start to 2007, Australia�s favourite hip hop artists, the Hilltop Hoods are returning to Splendour, snapping up a headlining slot for the sold out festival. MC Pressure chats to Cara Williams about the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Byron Bay and the Macquarie Dictionary.
By Cara Williams

Renowned for writing introspective and intelligent lyrics, the Hilltop Hoods songs are considered by many to be a reflection of their lives. With such pensive vocabulary one must ask the question, is Pressure having an ongoing love affair with the Macquarie Dictionary? �I actually don�t own a dictionary�, he laughs. �However I�ve been told quite often by Suffa that I�ve had to need one because what I�ve said in a rap doesn�t make sense, and a word I�ve used doesn�t mean what I thought it did. I�m fairly anally retentive and obsessive over my lyrics- I rewrite every verse that I record four or five times�.Forming in 1999, the Hilltop Hoods released their debut E.P, entitled �A Matter of Time�. In 2000 the boys were fortunate enough to receive an advertising grant from Arts Essay, which helped to fund the promotion behind the album and further expose the band. �It was a publicity grant� Pressure recalls. �We used it mainly to print up flyers and put ads in local street press for our album. To put out the album before that EP we actually had to take out a bank loan just to finance it. We were young and broke at the time and really had no other resources to get money. Luckily we had enough money left over from the sales of that to bring out our second album�.The 2003 release of their album �The Calling� saw the Hilltop Hoods receive platinum sales in Australia. Two tracks from the album were highly placed in 2003�s Triple J hottest 100. �Dumb Enough� sat at number 44, while �The Nosebleed Section� slotted in at number 9. A year later and the Australian Record Industry Association recognised the expansion of the hip hop audience, and introduced a new category in their annual awards, �Best Urban Release�. The inaugural award was won by Koolism. In 2006 The Hilltop Hoods later followed suit, taking out the same award after the release of their album �The Hard Road�. The band also won the award for �Best Independent Release�, and up against strong contenders, took out the prestigious J Award.In 2007 the band claimed five spots in Triple J's Hottest 100, with �The Hard Road� reaching 3rd place. The Hilltop Hoods received the most entries in the Hottest 100, which was one off Wolfmother�s efforts in the previous year. �We never go into those things expecting to win awards�, Pressure says. �But it�s good to get recognition from your peers that you work along side of in the industry, and I guess when you win it�s a bonus, and a good one at that. Triple J have been great to us over the years. We started getting played by them at a time when they were playing a lot of Australian Hip Hop- I guess we got in at the right moment. They have supported us over the years off air as well, sponsoring tours and that sort of thing�. In conjunction with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, The Hilltop Hoods have recently released �The Hard Road Restrung�- a remixed version of their triumphant album. �Adelaide Symphony Orchestra approached us initially to do a live project with them�. Pressure recalls. �We were a bit busy at the time so we knocked it back, but we kept it in mind�. We wanted to go on stage at the Aria�s a bit differently so we used a string quartet, ended up touring with them and then decided to remix the whole album with a full orchestra�. �An orchestra adds impact to anything.� Pressure elaborates. �It�s like the ultimate session musicians� playing for you isn�t it? You can adapt an orchestra to any type of music, which I guess we�ve proved and many people before us have proved�. A few years back and an Aussie hip hop act having excessive amounts of airplay on commercial radio was virtually non existent. Fast forward to the year 2007, and if you flip on the radio, there is a high chance of you listening to an Aussie hip hop beat. Once the influential youth radio station Triple J embraced the increasing popularity of Aussie Hip Hop many acts rose from the underground, causing quite a stir amongst eardrums that were desperately seeking change; and the Hilltop Hoods were front of the ranks in the obvious modification of the Australian music culture.So why now are audiences of Australian music taking note of Aussie hip hop�s popularity, and taking the movement seriously? �I think it just took a while for Australia in general being the people listening to the music and media outlets such as newspaper, magazine, radio etc. to sit up and take Australian hip hop seriously�. Pressure suggests. �Hip hop is very popular with the youth, and it has been for a long time�. �I think a lot of kids that grew up listening to hip hop aren�t kids any more; they�re adults and they�re in the workforce, and are working in media. They�re having an input on what gets said from their generation and the one after it, and are having a serious input into the music culture rather than just being listeners�. The Hilltop Hoods have mentioned their love for Splendour in the Grass on more than one occasion, frequently noting the weekend festival as one of their best. What makes Splendour in the Grass and particularly Byron Bay so appealing to the Hoods? �Byron Bay is a great place, good food, good drink, great weather; it�s the perfect location to have a weekend festival�, he raves. �We�ve had some great experiences with Splendour in the Grass because it was the first major festival we ever played after �The Calling� got a whole lot of praise in 2003. It was a turning point in our career so we�ve always held it in high regards.� And who is Pressure mainly keen on watching at Splendour? �Strangely enough, the Arctic Monkeys�. He admits hesitantly. �I think it�s more of a curiosity thing�. www.splendourinthegrass.com

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