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DINOSAUR JR. BACK FROM EXTINCTION
March 03, 2007
When alt-rock pioneer Dinosaur Jr. reunited with its original lineup in 2005, principals Lou Barlow and J. Mascis were asked about recording new material. Both brushed the idea aside. Barlow, who has had post-Dinosaur Jr. success with Sebadoh and the Folk Implosion, went so far as to tell The Village Voice that the idea of Dinosaur Jr. recording new material was "ridiculous." Mascis concurred, joking that Aerosmith should have stopped recording 20 years ago.
Yet on May 1, Dinosaur Jr. will release "Beyond" via indie Fat Possum Records. The album is its first of new material with the original lineup of guitarist Mascis, bassist Barlow and drummer Emmett "Patrick" Murphy since 1988’s "Bug." And it marks a turning point for Fat Possum, as well.
As to what inspired a change of heart, Barlow points to Brian Schwartz of Bleemusic, who co-manages Dinosaur Jr. with Barton Dahl of Madison House. Schwartz, Barlow says, is a quasi-member these days.
"At first, he was like, ‘Come on, guys, you got to do a new album,’ " Barlow says. "We told him to shut up. But he was so comically insistent about it that it had a way of taking the tension away from what would be a monumental decision for us. We realized it’s not that monumental at all. It’s kind of a lark."
Mascis plays down the influence of the management team. "I’m not listening to them so much," Mascis says. "It goes in one ear and out the other."
Instead, he says the band ultimately decided that if it were to keep touring, it would be wise to have some new songs. Dinosaur Jr. recorded three albums in the late ’80s with the original lineup, bringing a classic rock sensibility (read: extended guitar solos) to a masterfully loud hardcore sound. The band’s loud/soft dynamic would foreshadow the grunge and alt-rock era of the ’90s, during which Mascis led a Barlow-less Dinosaur Jr. through myriad lineup changes.
It’s not surprising that Mascis and Barlow have different takes on what brought the band back to the studio, as Dinosaur Jr. is infamous for being unable to communicate. The period before and after Barlow was kicked out in 1989 is well-documented in Michael Azerrad’s book, "Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes From the American Indie Underground 1981-1991."
The two may be older and wiser, but old habits die hard, Schwartz says. "I don’t think they’re at a point where they will actually pick up the phone and call one another," the manager says. "They sometimes communicate through e-mail to one another. It’s comic because it’s one line, and their e-mails are cryptic. I have to break the code on what they’re trying to say and make sure everyone’s on the same page."
"Beyond" has not yet been serviced to press, but two songs previewed on the band’s MySpace page don’t show the band diverging too much from its signature sound. The band recorded the album in Mascis’ home studio in Amherst, Mass.
"In a lot of ways, J’s just bringing the sound he’s been developing over the years—this really textured, heavy rock guitar," Barlow says. "It’s extraordinarily dynamic."
Aside from marking a new beginning for Dinosaur Jr., "Beyond" puts an exclamation point on the rebirth of Fat Possum. The label was started in 1992 in Oxford, Miss., by Matthew Johnson, and gave a recording home to a number of elder Mississippi bluesmen (R.L. Burnside, T-Model Ford).
But now, having survived a legal wrangling with former distributor Epitaph Records, Fat Possum has started to turn its focus away from the blues. The label has been steadily rebranding itself as more of an indie-rock imprint, and its releases are now handled by Sony BMG’s RED Distribution (see story, below).
Fat Possum’s Johnson admits to being skeptical when the prospect of signing Dinosaur Jr. was first presented. Despite the band’s commitment to tour at the end of the year and its alt-rock legacy, Johnson wasn’t interested in leftover songs from the ’80s and ’90s. Dinosaur Jr.’s last album for Blanco Y Negro/Sire, 1997’s "Hand It Over," sold 34,000 units in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, but the act peaked with 263,000 units for 1993’s "Where You Been."
He insisted on hearing new songs, and Mascis, Barlow and Murphy delivered. "Otherwise I would have walked," Johnson says.
And despite the massive success of reunited bands like the Pixies, Barlow notes Dinosaur Jr.’s goals are relatively modest.
"We’re just fighting being swept away," he says. "It’s not really capitalizing on anything. That means such a grandiose thing, like a band is stepping forward to claim its legacy. No, we’re just fighting to survive and preserve the good name of the music we made. Anything more than that is asking too much."
"Dinosaur_Tarpit " wrote:DINOSAUR JR. BACK FROM EXTINCTIONOh God, they’re BACK FROM EXTINCTION again ! Shit !
Isn’t it time to "extinct this extinction" ? Har har har 
"trensidoh " wrote:Oh God, they’re BACK FROM EXTINCTION again ! Shit ! Isn’t it time to "extinct this extinction" ? Har har har LOL.
It was nice to some sales info for the band. Can’t believe Hand It Over sold so poorly. But then the band broked up not long afterwards so I guess it was forgotten about. Not at all surprised to see Where You Been as their biggest-seller but it would have been nice if it had sold more. These guys deserve a Gold album or 3. I’d imagine Green Mind sold at least 150,000 in the U.S. and Without A Sound probably did around 220,000 or so. No idea about their pre-major label albums. I’d love to see Soundscan numbers for their career.
Didn’t Warner drop Dinosaur because "Hand It Over" sold next to nothing ? I think that’s what J said, that he thought people had enough of him and Dinosaur Jr, and then he decided to break up the band and start The Fog. Actually, Dinosaur… The Fog… it’s pretty much the same to me ! Although I always think J sounds better with a real rhythm section. I wonder how many items "Bug" sold…
Quote:Didn’t Warner drop Dinosaur because "Hand It Over" sold next to nothing ?No, it sold next to Celine Dion. I bet these earlier albums are selling well with the tours they’ve been doing.
"trensidoh " wrote:Although I always think J sounds better with a real rhythm section.Yeah its weird, I love Green Mind and most of that was done by J himself. But I do agree that he sounds way better with Lou and Murph in the mix. Still he created some classics without them.
Hand It Over is awesome. Still, suprised it sold 34,000 copies. I think Warner made a mistake dropping them instead of promoting them. You know the record companies and manufacturing areas made over a 100,000 on that.
"deepsIush " wrote:Hand It Over is awesome. Still, suprised it sold 34,000 copies. I think Warner made a mistake dropping them instead of promoting them. You know the record companies and manufacturing areas made over a 100,000 on that.I think Warner lost interest in them by 1995. Despite them managing hits with Start Choppin’ and Feel The Pain, I think they expected a Gold album with Where You Been or Without A Sound. When they didn’t manage it, they dropped any support they ever gave the band. I hope the new album sells well.
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