Highly Evolved

2002 will probably be remembered as the year when rock ‘n’ roll truly went global. Look at the musical map and you can draw a line stretching from New York (The Strokes), through Fagersta, Sweden (The Hives), back to Detroit (The White Stripes), whip down to New Zealand (The D4) and a quick hop, skip and jump over to Sydney, Australia, for the latest band to get critics in a lather, The Vines.

Sure, there is nothing particularly new, different or innovative about the way they grind their axe, but they do it with such old-fashioned gusto and consistency that it’s easy to get caught up in the sheer exuberance of it all. Take ‘Get Free’, two minutes of ballsy, in-yer-face attitude, with big shouty choruses and a large enough dollop of melody shoved on top to make it all as palatable as an extra helping of strawberries and ice-cream, or the title track, whose infectious grunged-up pop weighs in at a mere 94 seconds.

‘Homesick’, ‘Mary Jane’ and ‘Country Yard’ display their ability to tackle bittersweet balladry with equal aplomb, the chorus of the latter sounding oddly like Damon Albarn’s mob. Meanwhile, ‘Autumn Shade’ proves that The Beatles still exert an enormous influence over popular music. Then there’s the straight-for-the-jugular ‘Outtathaway!’ and ‘Ain’t No Room’, which aren’t afraid to get down and dirty and may even tempt you to shake a leg on the dancefloor.

‘1969’ trades the gutter for the stars, shining as brightly as a new cent as Craig Nicholls explains that “It’s 1969 in my head”, over a melody that positively shimmers with swagger and bravado: it all breaks down into a caterwauling guitar wig-out for the mid-section, before a stunning metamorphosis that sees these Vines turn into Doves before our very ears.

Highly Evolved is not going to change the face of rock ‘n’ roll, but it might just put a smile on your face.