As reunited college-rock progenitors Dinosaur Jr. kicked off the second of a two-night stint at The Filmore at Irving Plaza with the table-saw shredding of “Almost Ready,” the first song from their critically acclaimed reunion album Beyond, it was difficult to miss the sentiment of nostalgia from the jubilant crowd that packed the venue from the stage to the bar. An eclectic mix of ages and types was in attendance, from tatted-up college kids to buttoned-down folks who were in college when Bug was released, and I overheard more than one statement of, “This is what I grew UP on, man!” throughout the night. My intrepid photographer, returning from within the thrashing mass of bodies in front of the stage where she’d risked life, limb and camera for the good of you loyal Amplifier readers, echoed the feeling when she screamed to the few bits of cilia in my ear that could still receive vibrations after being relentlessly pummeled by the bands thick waves of needling sound that, “It’s like being in college again!”
Sentimentality was not the order of the evening for Dinosaur Jr., though. There was no reunion acknowledgment or fanfare or, “Gee thanks a lot it’s great to be back” from the band. In fact there was little banter from the stage at all, and what there was of it came from formerly-booted bassist Lou Barlow in the form of the occasional “thank you.” At one point, in seeming recognition of how loud the band was, Barlow motioned to someone close to the stage who’d been holding their ears and offered to give them the earplugs that’d just fallen out of his ears (sharing dirty earplugs - this does feel like college). But make no mistake, when I say the show was loud, I mean the awesome kind of loud.
On stage, there was little tension visible between Mascis, bassist Lou Barlow and drummer Murph, but they weren’t exactly singing harmonies into the same microphone or standing on the kick drum during solos either. In fact, they barely looked at each other except to make sure they were all starting the songs at the same time. But that mattered little to the crowd, who wasn’t there to analyze subtle glances or facial expressions between the band members. They were there for the same reason the band was: to rock, and they held up their end of the bargain as long as Dinosaur Jr. did.
The one-hour set consisted mostly of songs from Beyond, but they did reach into the back catalogue for some familiar highlights like “Feel the Pain” and set-closer “Freak Scene.” They also played their cover of The Cure’s “Just Like Heaven” and, as on the recorded version it’s amazing to hear how easily Mascis and Co. can make that song their own. Lots of jokes have been made about how the band’s members have not necessarily aged well (jokes which are thoroughly justified, btw), but their songs haven’t aged a bit, and neither has their ability to play them. One of the great things about Dinosaur Jr. live is J. Mascis’ ability to make it sound like there is at least two of him on stage. He pulls chords out of his guitar in thick, furious clumps and makes them sound as if they’re being fed through a wood chipper.
Live, it’s not about texture or layers like it is in the studio, it’s about getting those sounds out into the open, kicking them from all sides and getting to their sonic heart. All levels are up, all knobs are cranked. Drums are pummeled, bass growls beneath the floor boards, and Mascis drowns the crowd in sheets of relentless noise. It’s like being in a sonic wave pool. Not a whole lot of particular attention seemed to have been paid to the quality of the vocals; it was all about the sound.
After an encore set of “Bulbs of Passion,” “Lose,” and “Raisans,” Dinosaur Jr. thanked the crowd one last time, Murph threw his sticks out to clamoring fans, and the band walked quietly from the stage. No center stage bows with hands clasped together or arms around shoulders; no group waves, no curtain calls. Who knows if they’ll come back again or record another album before their chemistry once again tears them apart? Even if they don’t, we got one more loud night of ear-ringing nostalgia out of them - and we didn’t have to worry about finals the next morning.
--John Frusciante
Photo: Ari Scott
