ALBUM REVIEW – Winning Days by The Vines (Heavenly)

There’s nothing wrong with this album. That’s the first thing I noticed. There’s nothing wrong with it at all. It’s got nice artwork, it’s a nice length, and it’s well made. But that’s sort of the problem. It’s very heavily produced. It’s polished. It’s tight and tuneful, and in my mind’s eye I can just picture the hours and hours of work that've gone into making this as good as it is.
The whole thing seems a bit too board room friendly. I can imagine their agent saying “Look, guys. I know you want to be a rebellious rock outfit, but what we’re really looking for here is airplay."
And that’s what it’s going to get. In spades. Almost every single track has been so meticulously soft edged that even a hyperactive seven year old couldn’t hurt himself on them. It’s exactly the sort of playlist-friendly offering that has the foot tapping before you’ve even noticed. No doubt Vodafone will be queuing to buy the rights to Ride when they get tired of The Dandy Warhols. In fact, the album does remind me of The Dandy Warhols on more than one occasion. There are also shades of The Bluetones, and just about every other Post Britpop band from about six years ago.
Perhaps this is the heart of the problem. It’s dated music, but it’s not dated enough to be retro. It’s just a well made CD with no surprises.
But I still like it. There are some great moments, such as Sun Child, which would have felt right at home on a Beth Orton CD. (Hardly surprising considering she shares the same label.) And more ambient tracks like Amnesia which had me making comparisons to Pink Floyd.
Throughout the whole thirty-eight minutes, the distorted guitar solos and the sweetly harmonised vocals make for a satisfying experience. It’s just that the whole thing rarely lives up to the promise of what might have been if they’d only dared to crank it up a notch. I’ll stick to The Strokes for now.

Overall: Safe, Strong, Not too Long Score: 7

Buy it here.

Visit their excellent Flash website