The Vines back on track

Australian rockers The Vines have announced that they have overcome their much publicised problems and have just completed their third album.

Following a four-week stint in Sydney's BJB Studios with producer Wayne Connerly, the band say that the new record is "edgier and wilder".

The sessions mark the first return to the studio for the band since frontman Craig Nicholls was diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome.

"There's a bunch of different styles on this record," Connerly told the NME. "He's kind of got a little bit of that space rock stuff but he's also got some really intense wild punk rock, there something very primal about it."

He added: "Then he's got a couple of great Beatles kind of punk rock songs, a bit of sixties beat garage stuff, a couple of really good indie slacker tracks and a bit of soaring pop stuff like that. A few strings. He's always been a really big fan of that lush production, whether it's been obvious in the past."

Relationships and morale within the band are also said to have improved according to Connerly, though bass player Patrick Matthews has played a minimal role in the new album since his side project Youth Group took off.

The record is set to be released next year, though Nicholls' condition means uncertainty over any potential tour.document.write(unescape("