Chris DeLine

At the peak of the garage-rock revival, “Get Free” took The Vines to a state of stardom that most bands could only dream of. And after leaving a mark on every city, fan and reporter while touring the band shot back with the lackluster album, Winning Days. Despite an ongoing deal with Nissan to use the album’s first single “Ride,” Winning Days was far from impressive and can generally be considered a text book example of a sophomore slump. It didn’t seem to have the same power or the same fun energy; the band just wasn’t the all there. What followed? Public violence, band members resigning and lead singer Craig Nicholls being diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, a form of autism. It seemed that the band’s 15 minutes of fame had expired in what was a tragic downfall that left remaining members confused and with little hope for the future.

This I believed, myself, as many people did around the world. With word that a new album was being released, the thought struck my mind that The Vines hit it big and burned out, didn’t they? Vision Valley suggests that the answer to that question is emphatic no. Incorporating toned down, slightly matured music which still dazzles while occasionally relying on moments of relaxed acoustic fretwork, the album brings the band to its musical summit. Ultimately there is a running musical theme within the album, which I find both questionable and brilliant at the same time, that pokes out in a variety of points. That being that this is a Beatles album. The questionable: From time to time, an album is played, and it passes in one of my ears and out the other. And from time to time it is carelessly easy to point out just exactly which pieces of that album are borrowed from The Beatles. “Candy Daze” is one of these tracks as it makes little attempt to hide any parallel to The Beatles. It is a complete throw-back to the down-strumming, pre-psychadelia Beatles songs. The brilliant: The album has many fantastic songs and “Candy Daze” is one of these. And it has company.

Vision Valley can be viewed as not simply a modern interpretation of past sounds, such as The Beatles, however, but a modern reinterpretation of The Vines. Tracks such as “F*k Yeah” show a third wave of The Beatles; focusing on the brilliant interpretation and expansion of The Beatles that Nirvana played. “Dope Train” forces you to bob your head from side to side, in a Beatles-esque manner, then reminds you of who The Vines are as the guitars slowly erupt. While the band was undeserving of much of its early popularity it was also undeserving of some of the aftermath. Vision Valley serves as a reminder of that the band was and is good, and also, and more importantly, it serves as a surprisingly solid album from a band you may or may not want to remember, The Vines.

[This post was first published by Culture Bully.]