Hello reader,
Welcome back.
Today, we’re going to delve into Dinosaur Jr. I am surprised this is the first piece of Dinosaur Jr. content on SWT; while other bands have name-dropped them in some fashion on SWT, we haven’t had a feature, article, or even a review about the band. Josh and I are big fans, having seen them a few times live to the detriment of our eardrums. I owned most of their albums on vinyl, especially the 80s and 90s stuff. They always put on a fantastic live set, so see them if you haven’t and bring earplugs. You’ll see Murph drumming his heart out, Lou Barlow being Lou in the best force of nature (chaos or calm), and J Mascis being more reserved but also shredding and singing in his recognizable and lovable nasal drawl. To this day, that show many years ago indoors in Madison was arguably the loudest concert I’ve been to; Josh, Brett, and I were too close to the stack for too long. It was a great concert of fuzzy riffs and goodness, but we all experienced ringing in the ears and a lack of full hearing for too long after the show ended. Lessons learned.
I love the rich, storied history of Dinosaur Jr. and its members. Overall, the band has been active from 1984-1997 and from 2005 to the present. From 1982 to mid-1984, Barlow, Mascis, and bassist Scott Helland played in a hardcore punk band trio, Deep Wound, after kicking out lead vocalist Charlie Nakajima. The Amherst, Massachusetts band was influential in the development of grindcore (combining heavy metal and hardcore punk) and disbanded; Barlow, Mascis, and drummer Emmett Patrick Murphy “Murph” formed an “ear-bleeding country band” later in 1984. If you’re a long-time fan of Dinosaur Jr., the next several paragraphs before the photo are probably old news to you. If you’re not, it’s a fascinating history.
The Dinosaur Jr. Wikipedia page cites the incredible and necessary book which we at SWT have sung its praises many times as it is both informative and well worth a read, Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground, 1981–1991 by Michael Azerrad with these anecdotes as accepted parts of the band’s origins: “The band was initially named Mogo, and they played their first show on the University of Massachusetts Amherst campus in the first week of September 1984. However, Nakajima used the performance to launch an extended anti-police tirade. Mascis was so appalled by Nakajima’s behavior at the show that he disbanded the group the next day. A few days later, Mascis invited Barlow and Murph to form a new band without telling Nakajima. ‘I was kind of like too wimpy to kick him out, exactly,’ Mascis later admitted. ‘Communicating with people has been a constant problem in the band.’ The trio named themselves Dinosaur, and Mascis and Barlow took over shared lead vocal duties.” As I share the band’s history today, my goal isn’t to bring up old drama, but rather to educate and paint a relatively complete picture.
Their self-titled debut album, Dinosaur, was released to critical indifference on the short-lived Long Island-based indie distributor Homestead Records. It has since garnered more appreciation over the years. They released their second album, the legendary, influential, well-praised, and well-received You’re Living All Over Me in 1987. On the indie underground label that brought so many great bands to new ears and developed alternative rock in the 80s, SST Records. This album is well regarded for its influence on indie, shoegaze, and alternative rock; it is often on best or greatest albums of the 80s. Soon after the album was released, a Bay-Area supergroup called Dinosaurs which was formed in 1982 and consisted of Peter Albin of Big Brother and the Holding Company, John Cipollina of Quicksilver Messenger Service, Spencer Dryden of Jefferson Airplane, Robert Hunter of the Grateful Dead, Barry Melton of Country Joe and the Fish, and keyboardist Merl Saunders from the Saunders-Garcia Band sued over the use of the name, and Dinosaur became Dinosaur Jr. A band’s album output does not a band make, but that psychedelic music supergroup, only released one album, a self-titled one in 1988.
Dinosaur Jr. released their third album, Bug, in 1988 to critical praise. They toured on it and later in 1989, and to oversimplify the situation, they kicked bassist Barlow out after frequent arguments about control, where Barlow felt like he was being treated poorly, and they had not only creative differences, but, as Mascis noted two paragraphs above, poor communication… The way I see it with the benefit of hindsight, Mascis started figuring it out in the 2000s after not quite getting band dynamics in the 80s and 90s. In 1989, Barlow focused on his band, the great indie rock lo-fi project Sebadoh. Dinosaur Jr. first brought in the one and only Donna Dersch on bass and backing vocals, and she stayed through the band’s 1990 Australian tour. Later in 1990 and until 1991, Van Conner performed bass and backing vocals. Mike Johnson did the same from 1993 to 1997. No, not the deeply closeted current US Speaker of the House of Representatives. The band of Mascis, Murph, and Johnson released Green Mind (1991), which, as the Wikipedia page for the album notes, “The record is close to being a J Mascis solo album: he played most of the instruments, with founding drummer Murph only featuring on three tracks (1, 7 and 9).” This was followed by Where You Been (1993). After the touring, Murph left and was replaced by Mascis on the album Without a Sound (1994) and by George Berz on tour until the band ceased to exist in 1997.
In the early 2000s, Mascis formed J Mascis + The Fog and released two albums under the project: More Light (2000) and Free So Free (2002). More recently, he’s released four outstanding solo albums under his own name: Several Shades of Why (2011), Tied to a Star (2014), Elastic Days (2018), and What Do We Do Now (2024). I can’t get enough of those albums, especially the first two as his melodies and emotive vocals provide endless earworms for me.
Thankfully, as Wikipedia notes, citing an AV Club interview source, “Mascis and Barlow began to reconcile when Mascis began showing up at Sebadoh shows. ‘I think he was kind of aware of how much shit I was talking about him,’ Barlow noted in a 2005 interview, ‘but I don’t think he really ever pursued any of it. One of the things that really triggered this, for me to finally just go, ‘Hey, you know, maybe this could work,’ is when I realized that maybe J wasn’t really holding any kind of grudge against me because he didn’t like me. I was thinking, maybe he just didn’t realize what he had done, or maybe he wasn’t really aware of how much he’d actually hurt me. And when I started to realize that, he kind of became more human to me.” Fans of the band are grateful for this modern era of Dinosaur Jr., as newer fans like myself (since the reunion) are able to see and hear why the band has left such a lasting and significant legacy on musicians, but genres and decades of music as well.
Since that reunion of Mascis, Murphy, and Barlow in 2005 reuniting the original Dinosaur Jr. lineup, Barlow has been more involved in songwriting, and the group’s discography has featured several well-regarded albums including Beyond (2007), Farm (2009), I Bet on Sky (2012), Give a Glimpse of What Yer Not (2016), and Sweep It Into Space (2021). The most recent albums found homes on at least one year-end best albums of that year list.
And now to why some are here today: to read about the band’s newest album, There Near, which is out via Jagjaguwar Records on Friday, August 28th, for your listening pleasure.
Words from one of the prominent indie rock critics in the 80’s, Bryon Coley, via the album’s press release: “Finally! The sixth studio album Dinosaur Jr. have recorded in the 20 years since their triumphal rebirth. There have been several live and/or closet cleaning collections to keep us punters sated for the five years since Sweep It Into Space, but there is nothing quite like having a full slab of new Dino tunes to fry your ears. And There Near has all knobs set to Extra Crispy.
Right on. I always refer to myself as a reviewer, not a critic, and reading Cooley’s thoughts reaffirms my own beliefs on the titles. And now let’s listen to a few/ songs from the new album. Some hype for your ears and eyes via Dinosaur Jr.’s YouTube channel:
The guys outside being a bit playful with a photographer in the video for the opening track “Several Got Away”:
(All credits and rights to Dinosaur Jr.)
The entertaining video for the song “Everything At Once”:
(All credits and rights to Dinosaur Jr.)
Lou singing away on the song, “Blowin’ Up”. Check out the lyric visualizer here:
(All credits and rights to Dinosaur Jr.)
Dinosaur Jr. has a timeless sound to me, and while they’ve experimented melodically a bit over the years, when you think of Dinosaur Jr., there are a handful of songs on There Near that fit exactly what first comes to mind. The guitar work is loud, screeches at times during solos or duets, yet is always clear and righteous, leading the way forward; the bass adds depth to the melody and creates this groove of progress. And the thumping of Murph’s drums, alongside J’s nasally delivered tone that exudes slacker chill vibes, and sad bastardy-in-the-best-way lyrics are essential parts of a Dinosaur Jr. song and an album. Dinosaur Jr. has influenced others, and you can hear it while listening to music from Kurt Cobain, the Smashing Pumpkins, Radiohead, MBV, Slowdive, Mudhoney, Built to Spill, Uncle Tupelo, Band of Horses, and Kurt Vile, to name a few, for purposes of a more complete music education. Take the time to check out those groups if you’re unfamiliar.
It warmed my heart to hear Lou Barlow’s songwriting and lead vocals on “Blowin’ Up” and “No One’s Ready” as pointed criticisms of the current political system in the US. As much as I recognize J’s vocals and enjoy them, a little more Lou in your ears and brain over the top of a more subdued Lou influenced/crafted melody is a good thing. More please. The funk opening of “Put It Down” was a vibe and sound I’ve felt before, but not on a Dinosaur Jr. album. The guitar sound in the song was, too. Take a listen and tell me what you think. Even the songs some would deem “filler” are solid, moving the album forward and offering some great guitar solos. Most albums can’t say the same, especially weaker ones. And within the stronger songs, there’s a lot of strength, with earworms galore. They speak to your ears, grabbing hold and not letting go. Amen. I love when music does this. You’ll find yourself relistening to songs. And listening to the album on repeat. And adding songs to your playlists. Kudos to Murph, Lou and J, and Ken Mauri, who performed piano on “Take Me With You” and piano and organ on “Put It Down,” as well as the Engineers who worked on this excellent album.
There Near gets 4.5 out of 5 Scum Drops from me, slotting in the lower portion of that range. Just made it. This is as always, relative to all new releases this year. As extensive and excellent as Dinosaur Jr’s discography is, I believe this album fits within it. I would say within the mid-range to lower end of the upper portion of that discography. As good as their albums have been, the band is even better live. Remarkable. This continues in 2026. Long-term fans, what do you think? Do you hear what I hear on this new album or do you rate it differently? I think this album is worth adding to your collection in the formats of your choosing. Definitely get the vinyl. For Dinosaur Jr.? Always. On that sweet turntable and floor speakers out of the receiver? Hell yeah. It’s almost as good as it sounds live, only surpassed by the band’s incredible talent in person.
I’ll always advocate that you take the time to listen to every album in its entirety. Listening to There Near will take just over 42 minutes from start to finish. Less than an hour and a half if you listen twice back-to-back. Along the way, you’ll discover your own favorite songs without the influence or bias of others. After several listens, I found the songs highlighted in green below to be my favorites on this album.
The tracklist for There Near (song length)
- Several Got Away (3:33)
- No Friends (3:48)
- Everything At Once (4:14)
- Take Me With You (3:23)
- Blowin’ Up (3:05)
- Gone Off (3:33)
- Clam Along (4:48)
- Walk Me Back (3:56)
- Read The Room (4:22)
- Put It Down (4:17)
- No One’s Ready (3:15)
Total runtime: 42:14
Check out Dinosaur Jr.’s website and their Linktree; see them on tour; listen to more music via their Spotify page, via their Apple Music page, and their YouTube channel. Visit their socials like Instagram and their Facebook page,
Thank you for reading and supporting good music.
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Until next time,
Alex
Scummy Water Tower Productions co-founder, reviewer, business manager, and editor. Thank you for visiting this site, scummywatertower.com, and YouTube for Water Tower Sessions and SWT Interviews. And all of our socials.
Questions, feedback, or more? Contact me: alex@scummywatertower.com
