The Vines (band)
The Vines are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1994. Their sound has been described as a musical hybrid of 1960s garage rock and 1990s alternative rock. The band has been through several line-up changes, with vocalist/guitarist Craig Nicholls serving as the sole constant throughout the band's history.
The Vines
- Rishikesh
- Joe Dirt
- Foregone Conclusion
- the Crimes
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
1994–present
- Wicked Nature
- Capitol
- Heavenly
- Ivy League
- BMG
- Cooking Vinyl
- Sony
- Patrick Matthews
- David Olliffe
- Brad Heald
- Lachlan West
- Tim John
The Vines' success in the Australian recording industry resulted in winning the ARIA Award for Breakthrough Artist – Single for "Get Free" and receiving five other nominations for their debut album Highly Evolved, plus two further nominations in subsequent years. In 2003, the album went platinum in Australia,[1] and since then the band has released four albums and a best-of compilation from their time at Capitol Records. The Vines have released seven studio albums.
History[edit]
Formation and early years (1994–2001)[edit]
In 1991, Craig Nicholls met Patrick Matthews while working at their local McDonald's in the suburb of South Hurstville, New South Wales.[2] Bonded over a shared love of rock music, they began playing together at Matthews' home, with Nicholls on guitar and vocals and Matthews on bass. They were later joined by Matthews' school friend David Olliffe on drums.[3][4]
Reception[edit]
Upon the release of their debut album, the Vines were hailed as "the second coming of Nirvana" by the British press; their grungy sound was considered reminiscent of the Seattle scene c. 1991 and Nicholls' erratic on-stage behaviour and raw vocals drew comparisons between him and Kurt Cobain.[53][54][55] Highly Evolved became a huge success and their accompanying live shows in the early years were praised as "electrifying" and "sensational".[56]
Critical reactions to 2004's Winning Days were mixed. Pitchfork's Chris Ott described it as being "nothing more than boring and harmlessly vapid" and showing "only mild promise".[57] Conversely, Rolling Stone' David Fricke said it was "a leap forward in style and frenzy".[58]
In June 2021, Double J's Al Newstead wrote an op-ed in support of the band. "Their legacy isn't clean cut," he wrote, "but it's still remarkable to see what The Vines achieved, and chiefly what Nicholls survived."[59]
Legacy[edit]
The Vines gained notoriety in the early 2000s as one of the leading bands of the garage rock revival scene.[60][61] Their debut album Highly Evolved was named number two album of the year by NME[62][63] and listed in Rolling Stone Australia's 200 Greatest Australian Albums of All Time.[64]
In 2002, The Vines became the first Australian musical act to be featured on the cover of US Rolling Stone magazine since Men at Work in 1983;[65][5] this helped revive international interest in the Australian music scene, which numerous artists have continued to benefit from in subsequent years.[66]
The Vines are considered an influential group in the development of 2000s indie rock, with a number of bands and musicians citing them as an inspiration or influence. Alex Turner, frontman of Arctic Monkeys, credits The Vines as a major influence in Arctic Monkeys' early years, stating: "One of the reasons we formed the band was because of the Vines".[60] Turner also named Craig Nicholls' live performances as a powerful early inspiration[67][68] and described The Vines as "collectively our favorite band at the time."[69] Kevin Parker of Tame Impala and his bandmates remarked that they were "super massive fans" and idolised The Vines and Craig Nicholls when they were younger.[70] Wolf Alice cited The Vines as an early inspiration and named The Vines' second album Winning Days as one of the group's most vital influences.[71][72][73] While performing on stage in 2018, The Killers directly attributed The Vines with "blowing open" the doors for other indie bands like themselves to achieve mainstream success.[74][75] Other artists who have cited The Vines as an influence include Violent Soho,[76][77] British India[78] and VANT.[79]
Awards and nominations[edit]
ARIA Music Awards[edit]
The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987.