With the strong debut album Highly Evolved from 2002, the Australian group The Vines effortlessly joined the new school guitar bands, between names like The Strokes, The White Stripes and The Libertines. Then something went wrong when the group presented this record on the European stage. Singer Graig Nicholls was very over the top in terms of (self) destructive behavior and did not make friends
… with both his band and the audience. Asparagus Syndrome was reportedly diagnosed after returning home. Since then we see little The Vines in Europe (they are mega in their homeland) but a new album is released regularly. The fourth album Melodia again offers a combination of concise beat music (with Beatlesque choirs), garage rock and punk. Not very startling and at the same time catchy and timeless. But just like The La's (of which their garage pop with obstinate vocals sometimes reminds us) The Vines might have been better off sticking to an album. Then they would at least have been legendary by now. (MR)more
