The Vines Melodia Sounds Like: The Hives, Von Bondies, Supergrass
The year was 2002 and The Vines released Highly Evolved, a first effort that represented, for some, the awaited comeback of rock. The media dubbed them as "the new Nirvana," thanks to their neo-grunge sound and the raspy voice of vocalist Craig Nicholls. The younger generation was introduced to anarchic anthems they could relate to, which at the time seemed a more appealing option than The Strokes' snobbish retrosound. But everyone's interest quickly vanished as the two following albums, Winning Days and Vision Valley, made use of the same predictable high-octane formula. Melodia is practically the same, an unfocused and unambitious musical effort, a juvenile soundtrack for energy-release. Songs such as "Get Out" and "Merrygoround" are reminiscent of the rampant "Get Free," mixing '90s grunge with 60s pop. The album also combines this vehement rock sound with more mellow and acoustic-driven songs, which evoke the calm "Winning Days." This bipolarity is well marked, alternating Beatle-esque serenades with three minute, noisy garage songs. The problem with Melodia is not the quality of its songs; they do well at being pop-rock compositions. The problem is that the music scene has changed dramatically in the past six years, and The Vines' recipe is becoming obsolete. Look at The Hives or the Von Bondies - nobody listens to them anymore. Their teen fans have become adults and no longer have the same juvenile feelings of angst and rebellion. Why would they still listen to the same songs they listened to when they were 13?
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