Grant Summerland is returning after three years with the Unnatural History EP, the second release from the Californian musician. Written and performed entirely by Summerland and recorded in Portland with newcomer Producer Joel Lane, the 5-track project pays homage to the past 30 years of Indie Rock and Punk music. The single “Real Boy” is out now.
A combination of anthems and introspective ballads, the EP is themed on “growing up in the contemporary world and facing the passage of time head on”. This EP comes as Summerland and his Portland, Oregon-based live band Grant & The Summerlands, take the next step on their musical journey with a DIY West Coast tour scheduled for Spring 2023.
In 2020, the very same week that California announced COVID shutdowns, Summerland released his debut album Bigfoot Museum, which was a concept album that details a teenage horror movie via a nighttime drive through the Santa Cruz Mountains. In 2021, Summerland prepped for life after the pandemic by taking the songs from Bigfoot Museum and reworking them for a live setting.
The result of these was PATTERSON-GIMLIN: 2021 DEMOS, which was a four song tape recorded in a series of first-takes with Summerland on every instrument. This experiment developed into the act Grant & The Summerlands, a four piece live band designed to play these songs in an entirely new context.
The Unnatural History EP, shows the influence of the live band on the project’s music and hints at a number of directions they might move in the years ahead.
