The Vines — Melodia

The Vines should have imploded years ago by all rights.

The Aussie group were thrust into the spotlight in 2002 after the music industry rediscovered rock. But fickle tastes and frontman Craig Nicholls' erratic behaviour due to Asperger's syndrome scuttled chances for long-term success in North America. So it's pleasantly surprising to find the band not only still functioning, but knocking out high quality albums.

One listen to Melodia reveals the band haven't exactly progressed from the garage-meets-grunge sound they sculpted on their Highly Evolved breakthrough debut, but even then they weren't trying to break molds. The Vines' strength always came from Nicholls' mastery of the hook and the howl. Both of those things remain intact here.

Nicholls mines past glories for material ("Get Out" and "He's A Rocker" sound suspiciously like "Outtathaway" and "Ride," respectively). That the band bang out 14 songs in 32 minutes proves they know how not to wear out their welcome and is perhaps evidence as to their continued success.

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