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29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Just like the good ole daze, and maybe a little better..., May 1, 2007
("Beyond" by Dinosaur Jr.)
It's pretty much a fact of life these days that long-broken-up bands will reunite. What's surprising is that many of them have managed to retain the qualities that made them popular to begin with. Sometimes the bands will take the opportunity to reinvent themselves a bit (Wire's '02 comeback Send). Mostly, though, they go for their "original" sound, and usually the "original" songs, of their youth. It didn't really surprise me when Dinosaur Jr. reformed, even with all the personal drama surrounding the band's glimmer twins J. Mascis and Lou Barlow (all of which is beautifully dissected in Michael Azerrad's book Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground 1981-1991). I saw them live not long after the reunion was announced, and even though Mascis' curtain of brown hair had turned into a curtain of gray hair that made him look more like the lead vocalist for a Norwegian Black Metal band, their sound was remarkably consistent from the good ole daze. Fast forward to '07, and would ya believe that the new album is remarkably close in sound and general purpose to albums like the still-incredible Bug? Ultra-loud n' dirty grunge-stomp blues/country/punk, and can I have another solo please?--then add on some sweet, wistful pop melodies just to make things more confusing. It's almost as if the last 19 years never happened (although the post-breakup Dino Jr. albums, not to mention Barlow's influential Sebadoh, are nothing to sneeze at). At least, that's what I thought at first. Upon repeated listens, slight refinements and tweaks can be heard. Chief among these are the number of Mascis' guitar solos. Obviously he realizes his role as a post-punk guitar hero, and this album fills in every available space, and creates new ones, for his beautifully unconventional shredding skills. The second half of the 6 1/2 minute "Pick Me Up" is a joyful celebration of over-amped sloppiness--which is a pretty high compliment in my neck of the woods. While there are no songs here as immediately memorable as "Freak Scene" (which has become an anthem of sorts for alt-rock weirdos like yours truly), songs like the album opener "Almost Ready" come pretty close, and to compound the non-surprises, it might even become more highly enshrined in my musical head-space. Meanwhile, there's the soft ballad "I Got Lost," with its almost jazz-like drumming (all hail Murph, by the way) and washes of plaintive violin, which I don't think the Dino of old was even capable of. Barlow's "Lightning Bulb," one of two contributions from him on the album, reminds us what a great songwriter he always was (Sebadoh proved this), and makes me glad that he and Mascis were able to resolve their personal animosities. All this, and I haven't even mentioned the influence of Neil Young & Crazy Horse--that, then is what makes this album one step Beyond (sorry, I couldn't resist): The good ole daze were never this good!
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Pick This Up, May 6, 2007
Well, Dinosaur Jr are back together and in fine form after only 18 years since `Bug'. One wonders why they waited so long? Maybe with the Jesus and Mary Chain and other great underground acts to gain popularity during the eighties all reforming recently it just seemed like the thing to do? Some naysayers out there might say that after such a long time they are just not the same, but one listen will have you jumping on the wagon and saying yeah right. Now I ain't sayin' that this is as good as `You're Livin' All Over Me' but it's damn close and you should get out and grab it immediately.
Alright that first paragraph was just ridiculously stupid and indulgent. But seriously now, this reunion album is just so amazing I don't know how to tell you other than - like literally EVERYONE has said - it sounds like the last 18 years never happened. The only thing that keeps it from being as good as `Bug' and it's predecessor is the test of time. The guitar playing throughout - riffs, solos, and acoustic - doesn't fall below the quality of the J's best work, at times it's actually way better, and the same goes for the songwriting. The drumming just hasn't been this good ever (probably because J relinquished Nazi-like control over Murph).
"Almost Ready" was of course the first single. It opens the album in typical Dinosaur fashion. It's fast and loud. Murph rides the backbeat perfectly. J's singing is as laconic as ever and his soloing is everywhere. The song actually ends with two solos laid over each other. "Crumble" continues in what I feel could be an even catchier, better single. The guitar riffs are not only happier sounding, but are less crowded than "Almost Ready".
Listening to "Pick Me Up" for the first time, the fast, sludgefesty riffing, the great lyrics recalling the years ("I been wasted all these years/still the man that disappeared/I been left and I been wronged/and I don't think I belong/am I wrong...all along?"), the cool mellowed-out bridge where it's all laid out ("did I need you/all the while/I can't stop/it's always been/I feel useless/you just smile/can I scream/am I hurt/am I still wasted/am I still burnt/can I bend/to your will/y'know I need to/have a plan...") and then the solo takes over for the next three straight minutes and it is no exaggeration to tell you that you have never heard anything like this out of J on any recording, ever. On this solo I'd put Mascis up there against any of the greats. The first listen to this song, for any Dino fan, is nothing short of what a born again Christian must feel when they're born again.
"This Is All I Came to Do" is another one of Dinosaur Jr's best songs. Beginning right off the bat with a frenetic solo that leads into the slacker-anthem lyrics "take my problems/take me anyplace/take my mi-mi-mind as well/I been tryin/I got nothing else/it's down to you/as you can tell" it blossoms into a great little rock song with a really catchy, slacker-themed chorus and typically amazing solos.
"It's Me" starts with the biggest drum sound the original trio have ever conjured. It's joined by the murky swamp of J pounding the E string, punctuated with shimmery, sustained bar chords. "We're Not Alone" turns the focus slightly more on the country than the ear bleeding, as the music starts to become more melodic (at least on J's songs) from here to the end of the album - and in a completely good way. This song also has a solo to rival "Pick Me Up". "I Got Lost" takes it one step further with J singing in his "Not the Same" falsetto and is an entirely acoustic mellow ballad.
So after listening to this album now for about the 15th time in less than a week, it's still up there with the original three albums. It's almost as if they band had been hibernating and reawakened still fully formed, ready to shake off that cold with some hair-raising rock like you have not heard in a while. This is better than the Raconteurs, White Stripes, or any of that new revival garage rock, even as much as I love it. If you never heard Dinosaur Jr before, now is the time to start listening.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Where You Been? , May 20, 2007
Well, it really doesn't matter does it? I'm just glad Barlow and Mascis got back together. Really, I think Beyond is better than what J had been putting out with The Fog and is a high water mark that will increase Dinosaur's reputation and legend. I heard the first two songs and was instantly amazed. Indeed, "Almost Ready" and "Grumble" are as good as anything the band's ever put out. I've enjoyed the entire CD and expect to like it even more than I do now in the weeks to come. Complexity and richness are the unique attributes of these impeccable musicians. There is tantalizing texture to the music that makes the rest of what is out there today look like the shallow dreck it is. I'll be savoring this one for awhile.
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