Anarchy, nostalgia, and innovation: The EP that kickstarted Australia’s psychedelic boom
Before acts like Tame Impala and Pond led a new psychedelic charge in Australia, many other bands were blending 1960s and 1970s-inspired garage and alternative rock and setting the stage for a much-needed revival. Bands like Nirvana revolutionised a new strand of sluggish, brooding rock aspects, but others embraced a more retro and energetic style, fostering a breeding ground for the country’s psychedelic boom.
The most notable contemporary renaissance is largely marked by the boom of the early 2000s, with records like Tame Impala’s Innerspeaker, which reinvigorated many aspects of ’60s psychedelic rock through a modern lens. Instead of incorporating as many energetic heavy rock tropes, Kevin Parker’s psychedelic vision centred on a smooth ambience with an edge.
However, a few years before Parker’s debut, the Australian psychedelic boom had already been emerging at the hands of another act: the Vines. At the time, the band gained comparisons to the grunge movement and even became hailed by some as “the new Nirvana”. Still, they seemingly spawned more from the Beatles-inspired microcosm, even initially calling themselves “Rishikesh” inspired by the Fab Four’s visit to ashram in 1968.
Their influences focused on pinpointing the aspects of traditional pop-rock and new-wave that contemporary audiences would resonate with, so they started out covering songs that encompassed the best of both—from Nirvana to You Am I. The band would create a handful of demos, mixes, and EPs in the build-up to their anticipated debut, Highly Evolved, including the EP College, which comprised five songs on their record, including the title track, ‘Get Free’, and ‘Ride’.
The following pre-release tour would generate significant interest, with many becoming drawn to their own flavour of rock that somehow seemed both nostalgic and fresh. Although distinctive to the sounds that Tame Impala and countless others would later revolutionise, the Vines’ fuzzy guitar riffs, energetic rhythms, catchy melodies, and raw emotion captured the essence of contemporary psychedelia, laying the groundwork for the rise of the movement in the country.
Comparisons to Kurt Cobain seemed not too distant either, with songs like ‘Autumn Shade’ leaning into the grunge movement’s considered pacing and melancholic tropes without compromising on the retro edge of the psychedelic movement. Nonetheless, the Vines’ individuality and ability to appear sonically versatile signalled the new phase of psychedelic rock, with sounds that appeared to gaze back effortlessly, like casually glancing in the rearview mirror while steering confidently toward the future.
Despite having enough talent to make it, the most interesting thing about Vines’ success was that it also seemed to stem from an anarchic mindset. By nature, psychedelic music seems rooted in something more overtly laid back, but the band’s background, alongside the scene they emerged from, seemed to prove that the genre likely always had an edge, even in moments when it feels more inherently passive.
This was best evidenced by the band’s explosive live performances, but songs like ‘Get Free’ also hold more aggression than what many might associate with the contemporary genre, proving that their artistry was always rooted in complete originality. As frontman Craig Nicholls explained to Interview Magazine: “[The song] is about doing what you want. It’s a combination of strength and pain, fear and excitement. For me, though, getting free is in the music.”
