SOUNDTRACK: DINOSAUR JR.-Farm (2009).
I’ve been a fan of Dino Jr since my friend Al introduced me to Green Mind (I had missed the “classic” line up but caught this newer incarnation). And I loved it. I have enjoyed just about everything that J. Mascis has put out (although yes, there have been a few duds).
I missed the first reunion album (and will likely get it one of these days) but I had heard a few tracks from this disc on a pitchfork TV segment on IFC (if you can track down the show, it’s great). This one featured two Dino Jr tracks recorded live (?) in what looks like an attic. It sounds great and sounds very close to the record, but I hadn’t had the record yet so I don’t know if it was just a video or a new recording).
On the disc, the band sounds fantastic. The thing I loved about Dino in the post-Barlow/Murph stage was J Mascis’ amazing guitar work that morphed with his almost-beyond-slacker singing. He sings like such an under-achiever that it was amazing his guitar solos were so blistering.
What has changed on the new disc is that his vocals are a little less lazy/whiny sounding, he seems to be actually singing! And his guitar work sounds even better. The strangest thing is that even when he pulls off a hugely long guitar solo like on the nearly 9 minute “I Don’t Wanna Go There” he never sounds like a show off. The songs aren’t there to highlight the solos, rather, the solo sounds like an integral part of the song.
And this disc offers all of the things that the band is good at: lengthy guitar solo tracks like I mentioned and rocking fuzzed out guitar jams. And despite all of Dino’s noisy guitars and squalling solos they also wrote some amazingly catchy pop songs. And that’s true here, too (“Over It” and “I Want You to Know”).
I have been a little confused as to what inspired the band to reunite. I mean, Lou Barlow had a very successful thing with Sebadoh and Folk Implosion (scoring a huge hit with “Natural One”). And on this record, he only contributes two songs. So, it can’t be any kind of ego thing. I assume they just enjoyed playing together again.
But Barlow’s contributions add a lot to the record. A sense of depth in the verses and, of course, the utterly different sound than what Masics brings on his vocal tracks.
The disc came with a bonus disc of 4 songs: 2 covers and 2 Mascis solo pieces. They’re not essential, but they do show a lighthearted side of the band.
[READ: January 25, 2010] “Safari”
I wasn’t initially that interested in this piece. I’m not big on the whole safari thing, but I thought I’d give it a try. And I’m really glad I did. This story went in so many different directions, and covered so much ground, that it was practically a novel condensed into seven pages.
The story starts with Lou’s children. Lou and his children (and his nanny/student protegé/lover) are on a safari in Africa. Over the course of the story we learn that there are several other people on the safari with them (a rock star and his band, some older ladies who are birdwatching, Albert, the driver and, my favorite, Dean–a young actor who states the obvious). But we begin just with this family. (more…)
I Just Read About That... 