Cons: Otherwise forgettable, boring, and generally unoriginal...
The Bottom Line: The Vines never deserved favorable comparisons to Nirvana. In fact, they don't deserve favorable comparisons to any band. The Vines are...well..."blah."
lambchops's Full Review: Highly Evolved by The Vines
In the past five or six years there have been good “the” bands and bad “the bands.” One of those that I’ve never properly warmed to is The Vines. Hailing from Sydney, Australia and having been dubbed something akin to the second coming of Christ, the band really wanted to be something more than pop. Truth be told, the British press had it right—they wanted to be Nirvana but all spiffed up and pretty.
The irony is that The Vines are actually very much like the bands they tried so hard to not be—they are a blend of “the” garage and British pop. Nary a whit nor a whim of good old fashioned grunge to be found. Maybe had the band not tried to be so intense and pretentious I would have more use for their surprisingly well received 2002 debut Highly Evolved. As it stands, I’m slightly embarrassed to admit that it takes up a slot in my collection nestled amongst the likes of Velvet Revolver, Van Halen, Veruca Salt, and Violent Femmes.
While the band made their debut in 2002, they formed a few years earlier with the lineup of Craig Nicholls (vocals, guitar), Patrick Matthews (bass), David Oliffe (who was later replaced by Hamish Rosser on drums) and eventually second guitarist Ryan Griffiths. My first introduction to The Vines came some time shortly after the Highly Evolved debut. I think I saw them in a video. I believe it was for the song Get Free, but that really doesn’t matter. What matters, though, is the fact that the whole package annoyed me. It seemed concocted and for that matter cocky. If there’s one thing I hate in music, it is a young band with somewhat lacking experience and talent assuming they are the next big thing.
The problems I have with the album are apparent from the first, self titled track. While it is thankfully brief. While comparisons to post-grunge and grunge for that matter were made, I can’t help but the roots of this charade seem to be more in T. Rex and possibly The Dandy Warhols. Highly Evolved is short, punchy, and generally lacking in purpose. It easily could have been left in the waste bin and I wouldn’t have been any the wiser. I’m no more impressed by the second song, Autumn Shade. While I appreciate the Beatles-esque attempt at melody and the vague adult contemporary turn, I’m not impressed. Neither Autumn Shade nor the later Country Yard do anything for me. They are just tired old retreads of similar ideas that musicians have been kicking around for years.
One bright spot is the kinetic single Outtathaway which combines elements of other tracks in a perfectly reasonable manner. Nicholls screams while his bandmates wail on their respective instruments. The pace is fast, the melody is sunshiny. This was a brilliant choice for a single considering the overall dire quality of the rest of Highly Evolved. As the disc continues to spin, I’m lulled to sleep by the dull, droning and repetitive Sunshinin’. I’m mildly more impressed by the piano-driven Homesick but it is so ill-suited to the rest of the album that it works much better alone than in the context of this twelve-track release.
The first single is likely what drew favorable comparisons to grunge and post-grunge bands. The crunchy guitars, carefree performances and gravelly vocals of Get Free could have fit into the mid and late 1990s nicely. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t have stood out amongst the herd of similarly uninspired, boring “rock” songs. It seems to me that Nicholls tries too hard to be a combination of Kurt Cobain and Scott Weiland. He doesn’t even come close to succeeding. In fact, the attempt is so ridiculous that I can hardly squelch my laughter. Speaking of humorous things, Factory is a bit of a joke. Why? Well, it once again shows the band relying on the old standby Beatles (especially with the ca-chunking arrangement and ever-so-sweet melody). The aforementioned giggling returns because, well, it one of the most ridiculous attempts at being “artistic,” “creative,” and “original” I’ve ever heard. If the Vines can indeed vomit up one iota of imagination, it’s not apparent on Factory.
Secretly, deep beneath the layers of disdain, I’d hoped that Highly Evolved got better (or is it evolved) toward the end. In the Jungle is tired and unimaginative while Mary Jane returns back to The Vines version of the Beatles and tosses in some ridiculously ill-fitting electric guitars to add insult to injury. Slightly less insulting (only because I don’t despise it) is Ain’t No Room however any hope of ending on a high note is dashed with the astoundingly unexciting 1969
Somehow, much to my surprise there are plenty of folks out there who love Highly Evolved. I cannot for the life of me figure out what the appeal is. I personally don’t enjoy derivative, lifeless, and generally uncreative music. The Vines really, honestly are forgettable especially in the wake of “the” bands like The White Stripes who are so incredibly talented and interesting.
Rating: 1.5/5 stars
Track Listing:
01. Highly Evolved
02. Autumn Shade
03. Outtathaway!
04. Sunshinin’
05. Homesick
06. Get Free
07. Country Yard
08. Factory
09. In the Jungle
10. Mary Jane
11. Ain’t No Room
12. 1969
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