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Melodia

by

The Vines

 
Melodia
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Avg: 3.0 (4 ratings)

A casualty of the '00s garage revival gets free

  • We Say...

    Review by Kyle Anderson

    Just as every rock movement needs its Pearl Jam (to act as crossover populists) and its Nirvana (to be experimental and tragic), so too does it need its Stone Temple Pilots (to shoulder all the shit for the bigger acts). In the great rock reinvention of the early 21st century that saw the breakout of the Strokes and White Stripes, a quartet from Australia with a quirky, manic frontman scored a hit with a screeching post-punk track called "Get Free" and were immediately dismissed as the first great wannabes of the new generation. Never mind that most of the Vines' debut Highly Evolved was made up of trippy Britpop dirges and wasn't nearly as horrible as everybody remembers — frontman Craig Nicholls was immediately immortalized as the new Gavin Rossdale.

    But that was 2001. In the ensuing eight years, Nicholls became more famous for alienating band members, kicking photographers and going through treatment for Asperger Syndrome than for having a rock band that released two perfectly acceptable nu-garage records in 2004's Winning Days and 2006's Vision Valley. Now free from a major label, the Vines' Melodia reverts back to the balance struck on their debut: psych-infused space rock with a bit of buzzsaw hardcore thrown in for good measure. When it hits, it hits hard, as on the punchy drop-D throwback "Get Out" and the jackhammering "Scream." Not all of the ballads on Melodia work, though "She Is Gone" is a deeply affecting strum-and-cry. "Manger" has a Zeppelin-biting verse that dives out of the way for the sake of a soaring chorus that channels Parklife-era Blur. In fact, Nicholls and Damon Albarn have a lot in common: the lazy snarl, the toxic perspective and an interest in slamming genres together.

    That's not to say all of Nicholls aping works out for him, as single "He's a Rocker" is something the Von Bondies would dismiss as too crass. But just as Stone Temple Pilots accidentally made one of the best albums of the grunge era (Purple), Nicholls gives the Vines the potential to unleash greatness some day. Melodia is not that record, but it's a good start.

  • They Say...

    Review by Andrew Leahey, All Music Guide

    Melodia offers a short 'n' simple version of the Vines' freewheeling sound, interspersing the fuzz-guitar freakouts that launched the band in 2001 with the measured, melodic songs that help differentiate the Vines from other members of the garage rock revival. Like 2006's Vision Valley, it's also clouded by the specter of Craig Nicholls' mental disorder, which splintered the band's lineup in 2004 and threw its ability to tour into jeopardy. Confining himself to the studio should be good for Nicholls, but the songwriter focuses on brevity rather than craft, halting most of these songs around the two-minute mark without packing them full of dense, bubblegum-punk hooks. When the band barges its way through a song like "He's a Rocker," the result recalls the glory days of Highly Evolved, when Nicholls' tendency to go bonkers on-stage was mitigated by the punky promise of his tunes. Elsewhere, Melodia offers up a handful of winsome slower numbers -- most notably the lushly harmonized "Orange Amber" and "Kara Jayne," two charming examples of Nicholls' fascination with the Beatles -- but those fleeting highlights don't replace the swagger, the snot-nosed attitude, or the crazed noise that propelled the band to platinum status several years prior. On the sunny side, those willing to branch out may also find themselves enamored with "True as the Night," the album's requisite six-minute epic that, unlike the lengthy psychedelic pop opuses that conclude the Vines' previous albums, intentionally bisects Melodia's 14-song track list. Could it be a sign that the Vines wish to emphasize their diversions from the garage rock formula as much as the formula itself? Perhaps, but Melodia is too brief to yield any real answers.

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