The Vines

You may have been wondering just what The Vines have been up to over the past couple of years since they all but disappeared off the music radar. I headed to The Tote Hotel this evening to find out for myself.

The Collingwood venue played host to a not-so-secret show presented by the ever-popular MySpace. As their first Australian gig since a rather extended respite, The Vines appear set for a comeback.

In my opinion, The Vines have always been a solid Australian rock’n’roll group that worked well in the studio, but lacked the sobriety to play a decent live set. My recollections of past onstage antics consist of singer and songwriter Craig Nicholls stumbling across the stage almost collecting his band mates along the way, forgetting lyrics and smashing equipment. While this may all be in the name of rock’n’roll, bad manners and broken equipment are no substitute for quality. I presumed tonight would be much the same. To the contrary, this evening’s performance undoubtedly challenged my presumptions.

The Sydney boys packed the venue to bursting capacity, with many of the hundreds of supporters turned away after hours of queuing in the street. Some even resorted to climbing the back fence in an effort to join the mayhem inside. For the lucky few who managed to get in, The Vines played a well-timed set, and despite a few feedback problems throughout, everything onstage went smoothly. Their new material was received well by the overzealous crowd, which they played along with many of their old hits, notably Outtathaway, Ride and Get Free. The crowd were particularly responsive to the latter song and proceeded to jump up and down in some form of frenzy. Due to much radio play in recent weeks, vocals to their new single He’s A Rocker were echoed by many in the audience. The highlight of the set for me was their rendition of Outkast’s Miss Jackson, with slow-paced guitar and drums to add a somewhat nostalgic touch to the pop song. Finally, The Vines chose the track Scream from the new album to conclude the set.

It seems that the troublesome Nicholls may just be getting his act together. This comes in the wake of his highly publicised diagnosis with Aspergers Syndrome, a condition that greatly affects one’s ability to cope in unfamiliar surroundings and social interactions. As a result, the group has not toured since the diagnosis; alternatively the routine of recording has suited Nicholls’ condition well. Breaking routine to tour the nation again will be no easy feat for him, but the group have confirmed they will be doing so to coincide with the release of their forthcoming album Melodia, due out next month.

The next stage of The Vines’ career is ahead of them, and what a comeback this might just be.

Share this review on Facebook