Dinosaur Jr

Dinosaur Jr is an American alternative rock band. Their songs, while typically melodic, were performed at extremely high volumes, were saturated with guitar noise and distortion, and frequently punctuated by J Mascis' fluent guitar solos. Despite a lack of commercial success, they gained a loyal cult following, and can be seen, along with contemporaries Pixies, as an immediate precursor to the alternative rock boom of the early 1990s, personified by the success of acknowledged fans Nirvana.

History

They were formed as Dinosaur in 1983 in Amherst, Massachusetts by J Mascis (guitar and vocals) and his high school classmate Lou Barlow (bass guitar), following the break-up of their hardcore punk band Deep Wound. Shortly afterwards, Murph (Emmett Patrick Murphy, drums) joined them. Their debut album, Dinosaur was issued in 1985.

In 1987, in part due to support from fans in Sonic Youth they signed to SST Records, they released what is often considered their best album, You're Living All Over Me. Immediately following that album's release, another band called The Dinosaurs, featuring ex-members of Country Joe and the Fish and Jefferson Airplane, sued them over the use of the name, prompting the addition of "Jr".

Tensions ran high between Mascis and Barlow, and in 1989, after touring in support their third album Bug, Barlow was kicked out of the band. Thereafter, Barlow turned his full attention to his former side-project Sebadoh. "The Freed Pig", the opening track on 1991's Sebadoh III, famously documents Barlow's frustration at Mascis and his treatment within the band.

Murph continued to tour with Dinosaur into the early 1990s, but starting with Green Mind (1991), Mascis (who had started out as a drummer) began to record albums almost entirely on his own. For their later years, Mascis was supported on tour and infrequently on record by George Berz on drums and Mike Johnson on bass.

In 1992 the band was part of the "Rollercoaster" tour, a package tour based on the successful "Lollapolooza" festival, which featured The Jesus & Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine & Blur. On the 1993 release, Where You Been, the opening track ("Out There") had an accompanying video and was aired on MTV for a short time, as the show 120 Minutes was still popular as a late-night "alternative" video show.

After 1997's Hand It Over, Mascis finally retired the Dinosaur Jr. name. In 1999, he released the first of two solo albums under the name J Mascis and the Fog.

In 2004, Mascis regained the master rights to the first three Dinosaur Jr albums from SST, and arranged for their reissue on the Merge label in early 2005. The reissues coincided with the announcement that the original lineup of Mascis, Barlow and Murph was reuniting for a summer tour.

2006 saw the continuation of the Dinosaur Jr reunion tour, as well as the band's first DVD release. A new album is anticipated later in the year.

Dinosaur Jr's career was chronicled in Our Band Could Be Your Life, a book about several important American underground rock groups during the 1980s, and were one of the curators of 2006's All Tomorrow's Parties festival.

Discography

Studio albums

Year	Title	Label
1985	Dinosaur	Homestead (reissued 2005 on Merge Records)
1987	You're Living All Over Me	SST (reissued 2005 on Merge Records)
1988	Bug	SST (reissued 2005 on Merge Records)
1991	Green Mind	Blanco y Negro / Sire
1993	Where You Been	Blanco y Negro / Sire
1994	Without a Sound	Blanco y Negro / Sire
1997	Hand It Over	Blanco y Negro / Sire

EPs & Singles

Year	Title	Label
1987	Keep The Glove	SST
1987	Little Fury Things	SST
1988	Freak Scene	SST
1989	Just Like Heaven	SST
1991	The Wagon	Blanco y Negro / Sire
1991	Whatever's Cool With Me	Blanco y Negro / Sire
1993	Start Choppin'	Blanco y Negro / Sire
1993	Out There	Blanco y Negro / Sire
1994	Feel The Pain	Blanco y Negro / Sire
1995	I Don't Think So	Blanco y Negro / Sire
1997	Take A Run At The Sun	Blanco y Negro / Sire

Compilations

Year	Title	Label
1991	Fossils	SST
2000	BBC: In Session	Fuel 2000
2001	Ear-Bleeding Country: The Best of Dinosaur Jr	Rhino

Singles

Year	Title	Chart positions	Album
Year	Title	US Modern Rock	Album
1991	"The Wagon"	#22	Green Mind
1994	"Feel the Pain"	#4	Without a Sound

Samples

References

Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Dinosaur Jr." All Music Guide. Retrieved June 13, 2005.

External links

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