1991 :: 15-year-old Craig Nicholls meets Patrick Matthews while working in a Sydney branch of fast food chain McDonalds. At the time, the two are "obsessed with Nirvana," says Patrick. They begin playing together (Craig on guitar and vocals, Patrick on bass) and are joined by Patrick's school friend David Olliffe on drums. They also start listening to British bands, including Suede, Supergrass and The Verve.

Oct 1994 :: Patrick, Craig and David play their first gig as The Vines, named after a band fronted by Craig's father in the 1960's - The Vynes. It was an "18th birthday party at (Sydney suburb) Hurstville RSL Memorial Bowling Club" laughs Patrick of their glamorous introduction to the world of rock'n'roll. "We covered 'Been A Son' by Nirvana, 'Mr Milk' by You Am I and something else.. we only played about three songs."

Late 1998 :: The Vines play one of only a handful of gigs over six years, at The Iron Duke pub in Sydney. Supporting local band Starky, it's the first time they're called back onstage for an encore.

April 2000 :: The Vines are interviewed on Sydney community radio station FBi, who afterwards play a demo of "In The Jungle." Up until then, says Craig; "We were just sitting around at home, writing songs, going to the jam room once a week, playing them [and] demoing them on a four-track."

By chance, Andy Cassell, of Winterman and Goldstein Management and Ivy League Music is listening and is blown away. He tracks down the band and soon he and his two partners Peter Lusty and Andy Kelly begin managing them. Over the next few months the band are encouraged to demo all their songs, which are then sent out to a handful of industry A&R. The recordings generate immediate interest.

Sept 2000 :: They play an afternoon set at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Festival.

Oct 2000 :: The band play their first show in a major venue ­ supporting Australia's You Am I at the Metro Theatre in Sydney. Onstage Craig runs amuck, ripping his shirt off and almost smashing his guitar - deciding not to at the last second as it's expensive and rented (how times change ­ see Letterman appearance below). Label interest swells.

X-mas 2000 :: After three months of courting by several Australian record companies, the band spend all day on Christmas Eve with their managers deciding who to sign with. They finally choose to go with the newly established Engine Room, a Sydney production company that funds albums, then sells them on to record companies.

Feb 2001 :: The Vines begin pre-production of their debut album when they re-record their demos ("Drown the Baptists," "Get Free," "Winning Days," "Mary Jane," "Outtathaway," "Sunchilld") with Australian producer Greg Wales at Q Studios, Sydney.

May 2001 :: The Vines again support You Am I, this time as part of a small national tour. During their gigs, five-track CDs are handed out to all who turn up early enough to see them. The CDs include rough studio demos of "Country Yard," "Mary Jane," "Autumn Shade," "Factory" and "Highly Evolved."

July 2001 :: Having returned an email simply repeating "The Vines!" ad infinitum, the band are flown to Los Angeles to begin recording their debut album with Schnapf at Sunset Sound Studios. "I had a CD that had four or five songs on and listened to it over and over again," he recently told NME. "I liked that it was both melodic and snotty ­ it had attitude but it was very exciting and visceral."

Sept 2001 :: Recording is put on hold as funds for the album run low. For various reasons, including the fast pace of recent events and recording pressure, David Olliffe decides to leave LA and return to Australia.

Nov 2001 :: Recording recommences as a result of increasing US record company interest. Drummer Joey Waronker (Beck, REM) and former member of Elvis Costello And the Attractions, Pete Thomas, complete drum work on remaining tracks. The band record the album and a song for inclusion on the soundtrack to Sean Penn film I Am Sam - a cover of The Beatles' "I'm Only Sleeping."

Nov 2001 :: International media interest in The Vines increases with the release of their UK debut single, "Factory" on XL Recordings. NME calls it "Simply di-vine" and makes it single of the week on November 3.

Early Dec 2001 :: On the strength of the recordings coming in from LA, Capitol Records president Andy Slater signs The Vines to the label in the United States. Heavenly Records sign them up in the UK.

Back in Sydney, The Vines advertise in local street press for a new drummer. Thirty hopefuls respond, including Hamish Rosser who is on four weeks annual leave from his job as drummer for a Kinks tribute band in Nevada, USA. The advertisement calls for an "Experienced live drummer. Think Nirvana, The Kinks, Stone Roses." It is unsure whether other parts of the ad; "Awesome opportunity, smelly tour bus" are what initially spark his interest. Hamish returns to the US for one week to fulfil commitments, then returns to Australia to audition for Craig, who, along with Patrick, has returned to Sydney for the summer.

Feb 2002 :: The Vines play for the first time in six months and their first gigs as a four piece, with Craig's best friend Ryan Griffiths now joining on acoustic guitar and Hamish established on drums. Their fourth and last Sydney show at Vic On The Park sees a wall-to-wall crowd and a performance that has local street press Drum Media declaring them "a revelation." The band make a grand profit of AUS $41 from the gig. Russell Hopkinson, drummer of legendary Australian rock band You Am I releases a 7-inch of "Hot Leather" and "Sun Child" on his own Illustrious Artists label.

March 2002 :: Initially an introductory tour of four small venues in the UK, The Vines suddenly find themselves in the middle of a media frenzy, with NME enthusing their first show in Brighton to be "one of the most sensational" debut gigs they've ever seen and Manic Street Preachers front man James Dean Bradfield proclaiming them "absolutely fucking amazing." All four gigs are sold out, and two London shows and an extra Oxford date sell out within hours. Craig and Patrick are interviewed on Radio 1 and London's XFM.

April 2002 :: EMI Australia sign The Vines for Australian release.

The Vines support Doves at The Astoria on April 5 before recording live versions of "Highly Evolved" and "Get Free" for Top Of The Pops on April 11. They also appear on Later With Jools Holland and Saturday morning music show CD:UK.

"Highly Evolved" is released world-wide, debuting at #32 on the UK charts and gaining instant high rotation on Australian radio station Triple J.

The Vines return to Los Angeles mid April, to record their first music video and start a small US / Canada tour. "Get Free" is filmed in an aircraft hanger in Chandler Valley Center Studios, in Burbank, CA. Directed by Roman Coppola, the clip is recorded over two days and includes explosives, tonnes of dirt and Patrick doing two of his own stunts.

The band play their first music festival - on the Mojave Stage ("The Tent") at the Coachella Festival in the Los Angeles desert. They are one off from headlining, on at 9:30pm.

May 2002 :: The Vines play a handful of dates, which include sold-out gigs at LA's famous Troubadour and New York's hip Mercury Lounge, and the WHFS Festival in Washington. Their Toronto show also sells out, with 200 people waiting outside on the night hoping to get a ticket.

The band appear in the NEW section of Q Magazine.

"Get Free" is the most added track on US radio for the week of May 19, including rotation on influential college radio KROQ.

June 2002 :: The Vines appear on the front cover of NME on June 1.

The band play the KROQ Weenie Roast Festival in LA, on June 15.

The single "Get Free" is released worldwide on June 17.

The band embark on another small UK tour, including shows in Sheffield, Manchester, Glasgow, Liverpool, an XFM show in London and an early-evening slot on the Otherstage at Glastonbury Festival on June 27. NME declares them "Top Band All Weekend," saying "Triumph is totally theirs."

July 2002 :: The Vines debut album, Highly Evolved, is released in the UK on July 8, and the rest of the world on July 15. It lands at #3 in the UK charts behind Oasis and The Red Hot Chilli Peppers, making them the first Australian band ever to land a Top 5 spot on the UK charts with a debut. A week later it debuts at #11 in the US and #5 back home in Australia.

Album reviews start flooding in. The Times, London ­ "a sound so sexy and sludgy that it makes you want to roll around in it" (rating: 5/5), Rolling Stone, Australia ­ it "meets all the criteria for great debuts" (rating: 4/5), NME ­ a "shiver-down-the-spine" debut (rating: 9/10), Q Magazine - "the Australian quartet's debut album justifies the fuss" (rating: 4/5).

The band embark on another US / Canada tour, beginning with an MTV Live at Rock and Roll Hall of Fame appearance in Cleveland, Ohio on July 9.

The Vines appear in a Q Magazine feature from their May visit to New York.

They play Late Night With Conan O'Brien on July 16.

The band once again nab the front cover of NME on July 20, this time as part of a six page feature spread. The spread doesn't include any interviews with any members of The Vines however ­ instead it's full page illustrations of Craig with arrows pointing out parts of his body under the heading "Anatomy Of A Rock God," includes "eyewitness accounts from the early days" and ponders whether Highly Evolved is indeed "the greatest debut album ever."

August 2002 :: The Vines announce their first nationwide headline tour in Australia, set for September. Within 24 hours, their shows in Melbourne and Sydney are sold-out. Second shows announced sell out by the following week. Third shows look like being announced for both state capitals ­ while some locals remember that eight months ago The Vines couldn't even sell-out a 250 capacity pub in their hometown.

It's the end of their American tour. The Vines appear on The Late Show With David Letterman, August 19. They tear through "Get Free," culminating with Craig hurtling himself and his guitar into Hamish's drum kit ­ while Hamish is still drumming. "How about that! Is he alright?" guffaws an almost speechless Letterman going in to the ad-break. "Can't say!" laughs Dave's equally dumbfounded band-leader, Paul Shaffer. "Can't say for sure!"

The Vines play the Evening Session Stage at the Carling Weekend Festival in the UK, at Reading and Leeds, on August 23 and 24. Says NME; "The Vines were very very good. Very very very very good, in fact... highlights? All of it."

The band perform at the MTV 2002 Video Music Awards in New York on August 29.

Sept 2002 :: The Vines finally return home to Australia, beginning a national tour in Melbourne on September 13.