Dinosaur Jr - Dinosaur

Sat 28th May, 2005 in Music Reviews

Let’s be honest, there’s not a lot I can say about this record that hasn’t been said before. Over 20 years ago, a bunch of kids fresh out of high school started playing in a band called Dinosaur. Their first, self-titled, record was released in 1985 and was met with a moderate amount of acclaim, but understandably their real profundity wasn’t reached until later records.

Dinosaur obviously became Dinosaur Jr, after being forced to change their name by an old psychedelic band that just so happened to appear out of the woodwork after Dinosaur’s release. Twenty years on, the record still holds something exciting, even if it is entirely unfocused.

After a split in the ‘90’s, the band have sorted out their differences and reformed to play some shows in the US, UK and Japan and now their first three records have been reissued, complete with rare live offerings and the original album in a remastered form.

Dinosaur certainly doesn’t suffer from the remastering process as many records do, and it’s interesting to hear a slightly better sound on what was always quite a messy sounding record.

At the time, some critics hailed the record as a union between Sonic Youth and Neil Young, and quite frankly these comparisons are spot on. Clearly wearing their influences on their sleeves, the band power through a mixture of disjointed, wiry guitar noise, take Pointless for example, and breezy folk-rock, as apparent in songs like Severed Lips, over the 11 original tracks.

Highlights are the grunge classic Repulsion, with lead singer/guitarist J Mascis’ sloppy but ridiculously catchy melody and messy mix of sweet clean chords and dirty single guitar lines. Had this song been written a couple of years later, in the Teen Spirit era, one might think that it would have attracted a whole lot more attention than it received in 1985. But it can be fascinating to look back on songs like these as somewhat of a foundation of what was to come in the future of music.

Forget The Swan is another song that could certainly have attracted more attention had it been given more justice as far as recording went. Lou Barlow takes the lead vocal that sits perfectly between the solid bassline and drum pattern and Mascis’ wonderfully weird guitar lines. More collaboration like this could have seen Dinosaur Jr become an even more formidable force in alternative music later down the track.

The only bonus track here is a live recording of Does It Float. Quite frankly, it’s fucking abominable. The quality of the recording is almost unlistenable and Mascis’ screaming is a bit too much to handle. Having said that, it’s an excellent addition to the record, proving just how shambolic the band and their performances were at the time.

To Dinosaur Jr beginners, this probably should not be your first port of call for an introduction to the band. Their third record, Bug, which has also been re-issued, is more than likely a far more suitable choice to cut your teeth on. However, I highly recommend this re-issue to anyone who likes the band as it is more than likely your first chance to hear some of these songs together outside of a best-of type compilation.