Flew to Los Angeles to record debut album

American producer Rob Schnapf became impressed with The Vines after receiving a demo CD, leading him to express interest in collaborating with the band by sending an email filled with the phrase “The Vines!”. In July 2001, the band flew to Los Angeles, to begin recording their debut album, Highly Evolved , with Schnapf at Sunset Sound Studios. Running into money issues, the originally planned eight-week recording session extended to six months. Faced with pressure from the label, David Olliffe returned to Australia halfway through the recording, leading to the recruitment of session players such as Joey Waronker and Pete Thomas.