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2004's Winning Days was somewhat
indifferently received after The Vines' �ber-successful debut, Highly Evolved. With third album Vision Valley and after two years away from the limelight, The Vines will hope
to cement their reputation as a major force in punk rock, something that
Winning Days failed to do.
The first offering from Vision Valley was the arguably confusing Gross
Out. Clocking in at just 78 seconds it was, for some, a strange single
release. In the context of the album however it is far more understandable.
Sounding like a collision between Nirvana and Sex Pistols, Gross Out perfectly
summarises the kind of adrenaline fuelled, temperamental ferocity that has
defined The Vines' career thus far.
The opening assault too is rather fleeting, before you know it Anysound,
Nothin's Comin', and Candy Daze have flown past in a mere five and a half
minutes and we're into the middle of the album. Anysound is a brilliant
opener, based around a quirky, kitsch guitar riff it hints at a return to
form for the wizards of Oz. Nothin's Comin' sees a disturbing verse swell to
classic Vines territory for the chorus where Nicholls' guitar sounds like
it's just made the transition from caged animal to wild beast. Candy Daze is
again boisterous in nature and sees the employment of a retro sounding organ
to add a different element to the sometimes predictable Vines sound.
It isn't until the title track that we see some respite from the anarchy.
String-laden, acoustic guitar, beautiful. It represents a welcome dose of
change after being half pummelled to death by the first three songs and
exhibit's a growing maturity in The Vines' songwriting.
Other highlights include the rampant Don't Listen To The Radio, Fuk Yeh,
and Dope Train. Take Me Back is another go at something more downtempo but
rapidly grows tiresome and is ultimately disappointing, whilst Going Gone is
highly reminiscent of Highly Evolved's Autumn Shade.
If one thing is underlined, highlighted, and spelt out in capital letters
its that The Vines are very much better at raw, rowdy, energetic rock songs
than they are at slowed-down, stripped-down ballads - which just sound void
of any real passion. Its as if The Vines are writing these songs because
they feel they have to, not because they want to, but if they're going to
sound as half-arsed as they do then why not stick to what they do best and
release an album full of frenzied anarchic rock songs?
It is, however, brilliant to hear the voice of Craig Nicholls again, his
spasmodic, snotty delivery more spasmodic and snotty than ever, a "fuck you"
delivery sneered to anyone in it's path. His voice is something drastically
underrated by the media and the public alike, but can you really imagine
The Vines without the voice of Nicholls?
Apart from developing on the stock Vines sound a bit, Vision Valley
doesn't really offer anything new or exciting. There's nothing here that you
can't obtain from either of the previous albums and it's still some way off
the musical gem that is Highly Evolved. That record is poppy by comparison,
with an unexpected slow burn that renders it still exciting today. Vision
Valley's biggest problem is that it has very few songs that grab you and bury themselves in the core of your memory. Could be better.
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