The Vines lead singer Craig Nicholls may be mad, but he's not that bad, writes Christine Sams.

AFTER ordering four cheeseburgers, nine nuggets, four large fries and four large Cokes for The Vines, I had a silly urge to tell the girl behind the counter I was buying brunch for one of the world's biggest rock bands.

But there was a distraction from the back of the kitchen, where two guys in striped uniforms were laughing and singing out to each other.

The feisty duo could easily have been Craig Nicholls and Patrick Matthews, who worked side-by-side at a McDonald's in Sydney's inner west, before deciding to conquer the world of rock'n'roll.

But Nicholls and Matthews were too busy around the corner in a downstairs studio in inner-city Sydney, laying down tracks for their second album, with bandmates Hamish Rosser and Ryan Griffiths.

There was sweet irony in The Vines requesting Maccas for brunch after all, they hardly need to wrap burgers these days, given their massive international record deals and huge fan bases in Britain and the US. Such is the band's high-profile existence, Nicholls hesitated during a photo shoot with the food, and said, "I'm not sure whether we should pose with this stuff, it's not like they're paying us ... maybe we shouldwrap the food with newspaper instead."

Marketing issues aside, music fans and critics are still trying to work out whether The Vines are Australia's greatest rock band or merely an over-hyped group of mates from Sydney's suburbs.

If some rock critics are to bebelieved, the only thing beingfried these days is Nicholls's brain.

There have been mentions of lunacy, hints of a nervous breakdown, and even claims Nicholls is rock's next most likely candidate for suicide. (The singer slammed the description last year, saying it was unfair to families who had suffered real-life tragedies).

But for someone who is supposedly barking mad, Nicholls did a good job of being reserved and polite during brunch with Sunday Metro.

Sure, he threw some soft drink around during the photo shoot, and chuckled softly when Rosser stuffed fries in his ears and nose but it was nothing more than humorous banter between four guys in their 20s.

With his translucent skin and long-cut fringe, Nicholls is a long way removed from the bronzed Aussie males usually favoured by US audiences. But the 25-year-old has a strangely magnetic personality. Although he generally avoids eye contact and speaks in broken sentences (sometimes raving, without making a lot of sense), he knows how to capture his audience.

In the middle of a rambling, eye-rolling speech about music and rock stardom, Nicholls will suddenly say something short, sharp and intelligent that he emphasises with a direct stare from under his fringe.

The effect is exhilarating, and leaves everyone in the room waiting for more.

After the extraordinary success of their debut album Highly Evolved, which smashed its way into the charts in Britain and the US, The Vines attracted enormous praise overseas and intense criticism at home for being inexperienced and over-hyped.

There's a hint of tall-poppy syndrome in all the jibes, but for many local rock critics The Vines have yet to prove themselves onstage.

The band is now gearing up for its first performance at the Big Day Out on January 25, and a satellite show at the Enmore Theatre four days later.

Although keen to impress local fans, Nicholls says the band is not concerned about being criticised in Australia, because the members remain intensely proud of their music.

"You can't control what happens," he said. "We got recognition for the music and that's what we hoped for. We're really serious about it. With the whole fame thing, you're always trying to get someone's approval, and make them like you. It's a very shallow thing.

"The music ... the music itself is meditational, it's like a spiritual thing, it shouldn't inspire any negativity."

When asked whether the band has been over-hyped, Nicholls said he hoped fans would make up their own minds.

"You just want people to judge it for how they see it, how they hear it, without reading a bulletin beforehand."

It's hard to know whether he and Matthews, the founders of the band, sat around in their garages, plotting world domination but Nicholls expresses real surprise at the idea of being blindly ambitious.

"I knew if we were ever going to do anything, it would be with our first album," he said.

"We didn't even think we'd even be playing at the pub before we first started. It took a long time before we even did that."

These days, the band specialises in trashing drum kits on US TV, and giving eccentric performances during awards shows something Nicholls obviously relishes.

Despite his inherent shyness during conversation, the lead singer thinks nothing of twisting and contorting his body during performances, often throwing himself across stage in a frenzy.

His on-stage behaviour has prompted concerns about his mental state, with hints of serious drug use.

But although Nicholls' sometimes appears to be crazy, he's not stupid. If anything, he's been an eager pupil of Rock Star 101, idolising troubled (and controversial) artists including Kurt Cobain.

He's certainly not a copycat, but he was an eager student. Unlike many of the local musicians still bitching about the treatment given to The Vines, Nicholls has been busy fulfilling his own rock'n'roll dream.

Not only has his band sold millions of albums, it has appeared on the cover of US Rolling Stone magazine (and many other leading magazines), and been listened to from Boston to Birmingham.

But in true Aussie tradition, The Vines haven't exactly flaunted their success.

"I'm wearing the same T-shirt I've had for a few years," Nicholls said. "I've got one pair of dirty shoes that smell. I could probably afford to buy some more, but I'm too lazy."

For now, the band members are too busy concentrating on their second album to worry about designer clothes and A-listparties.

"Our only goal was to make a good album originally, and we did it," Nicholls said. "We feel really grateful that we're in a position to make another one.

"Hopefully this one will be more impressive and surprising. For the second album, we will have songs which are advanced lyrically, and arrangement wise.

"It will be more futuristic, but still very song-orientated."

He shrugged off any suggestions of pressure from the record company, considering the second album will be a major test of the band's credibility.

"We're really sure about our music, about what we want and what we don't want," he said.

Nicholls hopes The Vines will eventually expand into electronic music but, for now, they're happy to keep cooking up their unique blend of rock'n'roll.

The Vines will perform at the Big Day Out on January 26 and at the Enmore Theatre in Newtown, on January 29. Both events are soldout.

Let's do brunch

What can we say? McDonald's fast food outlets are everywhere, they're always open, and they're cheap. Sightings of trashed rock'n'rollers are not guaranteed, but there's sure to be a few characters lurking around the front counter.

'I'm not sure whether we should pose with this stuff, it's not like they're paying us ... maybe we should wrap the food with newspaper instead'