Magazine interviews with J

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Here`s part 2 of "Fossil Fuel" by Mike Mettler
from Guitar Nov 94:

(That relaxed country feel stems from Mascis`recently revised songwriting approch.While Dinosaur Jr.`s previous album,1993`s Where You Been,was more deliberately and dramatically arranged to include instrumentation courtesy of tympani,chimes,violin,cello,and kettle drum,Without A Sound avoids any overt orchestrtation,instead coming across as looser and more confident at it`s core.)
(Mascis is well aware of the diffrence.For him,a song needs three basic elements at heart to suceed:guitar,melody,and-this is the key-drums.Fact is,Mascis was a drummer himself when he burst on the scene in the early 80`s as a member of the hardcore outfit Deep Wound.When he started up the Dinosaur jr franchise in `85,he switched over to guitar and employed a friend known as Murph(a.k.a. Patrick Murphy)to pound the skins in his stead.But Mascis eventually found himself spending more and more time laying down precision drumming on his demos so that Murph would know exactly what Mascis wanted to hear,beat for beat.)

[SG]

Here`s part 3 of "Fossil Fuel" by Mike Mettler
from Guitar Nov 94:

(Mascis believes this painstaking procedure was the main reason the songs on the two albums prior to Sound(Where You Been and 91`s Green Mind)did`nt end up to his complete satisfaction.The net result:Murph is officially banished from the band and Mascis is the sole drummer credited on the new album."It`s much better this way,"Mascis explains."I did`nt have to nail down the drums beforehand to teach to someone else.I did`nt even have to work it out or overanalyze it.I just played it straight,which made the music much looser.So Mike(Johnson,bassist) and I recorded the bass and drum part together.As for the songs themselves,I just wrote them on my guitar."
(J penned most of the album on a pair of Martins,one being an"experimental"unissued model sporting a wide neck,the other a D-28S with similar specs."they`re both made of Brazilian rosewood,which makes a big diffrence to me soundwise,"(he raves)."I like acoustics with wider necks because I don`t like my fingers getting in the way of each other."(Mascis cites Bob Dylan,folkie Nick Drake,and Ron Wood as acoustic influences,but his biggest unplugged hero contiues to be the venerable Richard Thompson."I just did a song of his,`I Misunderstood` for a all-covers album,"(he says proudly.With Firehose`s low end monster bassist Mike Watt on board as his sole support,Mascis blazes through this track from Thompson`s heralded `91 effort,Rumor And Sigh,and the songalso can be found on Capitol`s just released Beat The Retreat(Songs by Richard Thompson).(Incidently,Mascis pops up on another current tribute album,Mercury`s Kiss My Ass compilation,where he puts his own indelible,rough hewn stamp on "Goin Blind".)

[SG]

Here`s part 4 of "Fossil Fuel" by Mike Mettler
From Guitar Nov 94:

"I chose that track because I thought I could sing it better than some of the other tracks available,"(he notes.)"Most of those Kiss lyrics are so not me-that rock and roll all nite,party every day thing.But they asked me to be on the album;I got the call from Gene(Simmons),And I saved the message."
(Back on the Sound front,Mascis surprised himself by utilizing a capo over the course of the entire record.)"That came about because one day I was playing the song`Seemed Like The Thing` and I was trying to figure out where my singing voice was going to fit in,"(he explains)"the last time I used one was on `Little Furry Things`(from You`re Living All Over Me.)Using the capo on the second fret to get a D-type sound helps my voice fit in better with the melody.I don`t like to have to transpose the weird riffs I`m playing on guitar to accommodate my singing,so the capo really helped me there.Then I just went crazy and used it on the entire album,though I really could`nt tell you why."
(When it comes to gear,Mascis will champion vintage equipment until(if you pardon the expression)the cows come home.(you see,he also displays a fondness for collecting cow-oriented memorbilia.)"I`m not obsessed with a guitar`s original condition,just that it`s old,"(he relates)"it inspires me to play more if I just look at something that`s vintage,you know?I`m not a big fan of new guitar stuff at all.I like to think of guitars as items…for example,take drums.Drums I really don`t care about.If they sound good,fine;I`ve never been interested in old drums.But guitars…it`s a lot more important that they feel better and sound better,that they`re lived in.I`m not just playing guitar as an instrument-I mean,I could never play an Ibanez and do the Steve Vai thing."

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