Merge tried to like this album, it really did. On the first play-through however, we couldn’t get past track five. Listening to the subsequent nine tracks, at a more appropriate time (when no-one else was in the office), there were redeemable moments.

 

The punchy altruistic lyrics are still there. In ‘Pearl’ when Batla reminds his audience of their privilege and responsibility: “You’re a first-world-resident, you’re starting way ahead of ‘em, You could rival Edison, or invent the new Medicine” and also in ‘Emergency’ when Urthboy references Gil-Scot Heron’s famous song ‘The Revolution Will Not Be Televised’ both hit that raw Herd politik. Yet continually the music, which is meant to compliment and enhance the message, does its best to confuse the listener.

 

 

The album basically feels like it was written for Jane Tyrrell, now a full band member after only featuring on previous albums. Where Jayne Tyrell was once the nightingale that swooped in on the Herd’s hooks to soften and sweeten the hard, political spits of Batla and Urthboy, on Summerland she sounds more like a persistent seagull on the foreshore asking for more chips than necessary.

 

For instance ‘Zug Zug’ starts out fun, reminiscent of channel 2’s At the Movies with Marg and Dave. But unlike that show, which sucks you in with quick poignant remarks, Zug Zug just plain sucks. Half-way through the track, when the verses finish and a logical conclusion could be reached, Tyrrell continues zug, zug zugging the chorus for a further two minutes.

 

Summerland was a heartbreaking experience because this reviewer is a fan of both group and label. But perhaps the difference between this album and 2005’s The Sun Never Sets are the different paths the two lead vocalists, Urthboy and Ozi Batla have travelled with their solo careers. I hated The Signal (2007) but loved Astronomy Class’ Exit Strategy (2006). Where The Signal left me annoyed and cold, Exit Strategy picked up my soul and gently rubbed it with syrupy-dub flavour and warmed it all the way through. Summerland has a clunky noise about it like two peg-legged pirates trying to dance the Samba without touching each other - it’s just not tight.

 

Filled with sentimental-sounding epic ballads of boredom; loaded with haunting brass details and too much Tyrrell, Summerland sounds like it forgot about Hip Hop. And that would be fine if it did a good job with something else… but it doesn’t. Ultimately it seems like this is an in-between album that might herald a new sound and direction for one of Australia’s most-loved Hip Hop groups. At the moment it’s the sound of a group without soul. Maybe they should listen to Exit Strategy?