Dinosaur Jr - Dinosaur CD

The enhanced portion of this CD contains videos for "Little Fury Things" and "Just Like Heaven." One of the great albums of the late-1980s US indie scene, 1987's YOU'RE LIVING ALL OVER ME is a pre-grunge guitar rock masterpiece. Clearly as influenced by, say, Black Sabbath as the nascent Seattle scene was at the same time, guitarist J. Mascis, bassist Lou Barlow (whose "Poledo" is the album's weirdest song), and drummer ...

As one of the seminal college-rock bands of the late '80s/early '90s, * Jr. definitively bridged the gap between the musical mindsets of '80s "alternative" and '90s "indie." Along the way, they influenced scads of young slackers wielding fuzzy guitars and moldy Neil Young albums. The recordings around which the band's legend largely revolves (GREEN MIND, YOU'RE LIVING ALL OVER ME, BUG) epitomized the slacker-rock aesthetic through J. Mascis's laid-back...

The 2005 Merge Records re-release of BUG boasts razor-fine, remastered sound and bonus videos of "Freak Scene" and "No Bones." One of the great albums of late-1980s alternative rock, BUG is the culmination of * Jr.'s early period. Though guitarist/singer J. Mascis would go on to record other fine outings, BUG was the last release by the original lineup (featuring future Sebadoh leader Lou Barlow), and it perfects the elements introduced...

FARM is in every respect an equal to *, Jr's 2007 comeback, BEYOND: a muscular, melodic monster that stands among the best albums the band has made. It possesses an impressive combination of vigor and consistency, sounding as if it could have arrived in the early '90s, minus some subtle distinctions in production and attitude. * Jr.'s assuredness is striking; Mascis may drawl that he "did it wrong" on the...

* Jr.'s baroque moment finds J. Mascis bringing in a string section and adding the occasional odd instrument himself to his band's power-trio splatter. But if Mascis is the Neil Young of the post-hard-core generation, that doesn't make WHERE YOU BEEN his HARVEST. Au contraire, it's still loaded with feedback squalls, distorted guitar solos and all other manner of electric melancholy. It does make WHERE YOU BEEN his most integrated...

GREEN MIND (1991) is * Jr.'s major-label debut, following five years on the esteemed indie SST. It's kind of surprising that the band made it to the majors at all, because the original lineup of guitarist/singer J. Mascis, bassist Lou Barlow, and drummer Murph had imploded quite publicly and viciously in 1989. Though Murph drums on three tracks and noise-scenester Don Fleming plays acoustic bass on one, GREEN...