SummerHill – Alive With The Sound Of Music

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Who is SummerHill? Did they really take the name SummerHill because they all live in SummerHill, Lanang, Davao City?

SummerHill is primarily a grunge band in Davao City. The original band was formed in 2008. They initially called themselves “SwordBearer” and eventually ended up using their current, less medieval sounding name. Their sound has evolved through the years to include hard rock, pinoy rock and heavy metal in the mix.

According to the singer, Bruce, they did take the residential area’s name because they all lived in SummerHill.

Who’s In The Band?

The Old Villagers

The band has had several lineup changes, with the current one recording a 5 song EP in 2019 called “The Old Villagers”. It’s available on Spotify

Here’s their Spotify Link: https://open.spotify.com/album/6AF3KpLWt8oaCee5BRE2On

It’s a good EP that evokes images of 90’s grunge with a dash of old school thrash metal riffs thrown in for good measure. There are hints of Alice in Chains, Metallica, Snakebite Religion, Death By Stereo and Tame The Tikbalang in there.

We listened to the tracks and it seems like they used an old Proco Rat Distortion to good use. The band also made it a point to keep it as raw as possible. It’s a very straightforward mix with little to no embellishments on the instruments. It’s as pure as they come.

The vocals are right in your face which pushes their message of social injustices, anger, and (surprise, surprise) love out of the speakers and into your ears like a sledgehammer to a flimsy wall.

The songs were originally made by past members Juneil Masicampo and Paxio Allawan. The current members have updated it with new lyrics and arrangements.

There are plans for a new EP and another music video for “Taciturnity” to come out in the future.

Bala

This is definitely their single. It just stands out as one heavy mess of a rocker. There’s also a video of this out on Youtube. The band produced the video with very little money and a lot of help from Bryan Jay Esponilla. The result? A very cool video. Here it is:

https://youtu.be/P0a6NNQztXw

One listen to the track and it takes you back to the 90s. These guys are supposed to be grunge, right? Well, it seems like they’re also showing their heavy metal roots with the down-picked groovy riffs, Steve Vai inspired elephant screams and James Hetfield-esque yeahs.

And then there’s the speeded up solo shredding in between before it comes and pounds you back into the original groove.

All the right elements to make it a good song is in there. So, yeah! Nice one.

Other tracks: Taciturnity, Anger, 8 Counts (catchy chorus with a Layne Staley inspired solo in the middle) and the slow burning Respectfully Yours are in there too.