Surface Paradise is the second full-length album by Melbourne band Root!, released on July 24, 2009. The album follows the previous year's EP release Get Up Yourself, of which several references are made to. Continuing the band's more rock-oriented explorations since their debut, the album features several recurring motifs, both musical and lyrical and can be considered a loose concept album. The album's concept is that of the fictional, and perhaps metaphorical, 'Surface Paradise', which is most specifically referred to in the album's title tracks. The paradise itself is directly mentioned as a being like a supermarket, yet it is likely to be a non-physical place, where the world's trendy and elite are seen to reside.
The album features extensive liner notes, tying into the album's conceptual themes. Rather than featuring any traditional descriptions of the songs, the notes are exhibited as several pages taken from a book. The book appears to deal with the band's eponymous 'Root' character, as well as the characters 'The Unit' and 'Tyfani'. In addition to the full-length album, early runs of the CD are accompanied by a bonus disc of early Root! demos. This disc, titled First Root!, is accompanied by its own set of liner notes which detail the band's formation and early years.
