Hilltop Hoods | As good as it gets

Looking back at the Australian music scene over the past 10 years, it is evident that no genre can rival the growth or popularity of Australian Hip Hop. There are numerous acts within the genre, tailoring to all tastes, but none have been as influential and ground breaking as Adelaide industry heavy weights, The Hilltop Hoods. Not only have The Hoods remained leaders of the scene, revelled by heads, but they have become quintessential listening for fans of any genre of music, providing party anthems for Australians year after year.

Since meeting at Blackwood High School in the hills of Adelaide, emcees Suffa and Pressure have shared an unparalleled passion for music. As time passed, the duo joined up with DJ Debris through a mutual friend and the dynamic for the group was complete. In 1997, the group released their first EP Back Once Again. Since then, they have released six studio albums, three DVDs and a ‘restrung’ version of The Hard Road which remixed their classic sound with that of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. Throughout their career, The Hoods have received ARIAs, had the highest selling Australian Hip Hop release of all time, received numerous accolades as formidable live performers, and have successfully started their own record Hip Hop label, Golden Era Records.

Recently, The Hoods dropped their sixth studio album, Drinking From The Sun. The album debuted at number one on the ARIA charts and held that position for a number of weeks. “It’s really nice, the response has been amazing, but to tell the truth, things like that are more of a by-product than a goal.  It’s the end product that makes the hard work worthwhile,” Suffa explained. The guys are grateful for this success, but credit their real satisfaction as coming from making music.

While the album has been working its way through music circles, The Hoods have been busy touring overseas, with a crazy reception. While they have always been well received in Canada, they are now starting to make in-roads in the States. “Europe’s been going well for us too, particularly Switzerland. I think our music translates easier to places where English is the second language, because the accent isn’t as much of an issue,” Suffa added.

During their tour of the States, the group had the opportunity to play a show in New York, a city that is undoubtedly the birth place of Hip Hop. This was the first NY show for The Hoods and it had been a long time coming. Their set was opened by Boogie Blind, and also saw Pharoahe getting up for a track. All in all, the guys felt NY treated them well and found the experience to be both memorable and fun.

A few weeks back, The Hoods announced the winner of a remix competition they ran in association with Triple J. Both were shocked by the amount of interest in the competition, with over 650 entrants, all of which were personally listened to by Suffa. “The quality was great. Of course, there were people at different stages of development, but overall the quality of the entrants was awesome,” said Suffa. Triple J narrowed the field down to 20 entrants and The Hoods selected Queensland duo Death Starr to take out the title.

This year is going to be full of touring, touring and more touring for the group, with a national tour for Drinking From The Sun set to take place in July/August. Further dates will be released over the next few weeks. Additionally, they have a lot of label stuff going on as well, with Briggs and Vents both dropping albums this year.

In closing The Hoods would like to give shouts to Golden Era Fam!

You can find the Hilltop Hoods latest album Drinking From The Sun on iTunes here

Check out the Hilltop Hoods latest filmclip off Drinking From The Sun

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