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It's hard to write any feature on The Vines without preceding it with talk of their debut album, Highly Evolved. An album full of raw energy and hook-filled from start to finish. There was genuine excitement surrounding the Ozzie rockers, but since what have subsequently proved to be the glory days of old, The Vines have failed to deliver somewhat.
Now they're back. We've learnt that the singer's tantrums and terse, snarling behaviour (leading many among the music press to label him with unsavoury adjectives, and even worse nouns) is due, at least in part, to being partly autistic, a condition which has gone undiagnosed his whole life. This, perhaps, has contributed to the frustration that manifests itself in The Vines rabid punk/rock songs that have come to define their sound along their career.
That frustration is more prominent than ever on Melodia - and with 12 of its 14 tracks clocking in at under two-and-a-half minutes, Melodia cares little for niceties, and is direct to say the least.
We begin with Get Out, which is a reminder, as if it were needed, of the debt The Subways owe to The Vines - a raucous, anthemic punk song with a knowing pop sensibility, and Nicholls' renowned brazen snarl. Manger follows a similar formula, and while these songs will be too easy for some, it hints at a return to form for The Vines.
That is, before, Autumn Shade III, attempting to reprise the reprise of Winning Days' Autumn Shade II, that attempted to reprise Highly Evolved's blissful Autumn Shade. Anyone who's heard the original can guess at how this song sounds, shimmering acoustic, lush melody, vocal harmony time, but seriously: let it go, boys.
As well as having a shit title, He's A Rocker has shit lyrics too. Which is a shame, because musically, the chorus is a filthy, snotty, gloriously addictive bastard, while Orange Amber is The Vines trying to be The Beatles, again, and fails to come to life.
True As The Night, when singled out, is a nice listen, a gloopy, donwtempo acoustic that sees The Vines get their string arrangement out. But in the context of the album, it's not The Vines, and sticks out awkwardly. Thank god then, for Braindead, a prowling verse that stalks a rabid, blood-sucking chorus, with Nicholls' vocal melody launching itself into the stratosphere. Melodia's best moment.
Perhaps it's a problem with sequencing, as no doubt some of the acoustically driven material that The Vines compose is glorious, but it always sits difficultly alongside the heavier, angrier stuff that they are better at writing, and more at home playing. It's a problem that has manifested itself on every album, and is more than evident on Melodia - could it be possible that, 4 albums into their career, The Vines are still not sure of their sound?
Maybe so. But while Melodia uncovers no new territory, it's a reminder that when they get it right, The Vines are awesome, and I reckon their inevitable Best Of will be amazing.
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