The Vines - Vision Valley

After a tempestuous 18 months in which Vines' visionary Craig Nicholls was diagnosed with a form of Asperger's syndrome, the fact that the grunge-laden antipodeans have released another album at all is impressive. This, their third, sees the boys on familiar ground with every last shouty, yet catchy hook in place. As with their previous efforts, the real pearls on offer here are the almost ballady numbers where the band's harmonic tendencies take flight. This is none more evident than on the melancholy title track, an effortlessly superb number hinting at REM's Country Feedback. Things get a little mundane on the seemingly lazy Gross Out and Dope Train, but such lulls are in the minority here. Not as much vision as you might expect, but enough foresight to stick with what they're good at. [Jon Seller]