Album Review

Dinosaur Jr. – Beyond

• 26th May 2007

Returning from the ashes for their first album in eighteen years. J Mascis is forty one years old now but very little seems to have changed. This album is packed full of the old formula: First half of the song is verse chorus verse chorus and the second half is awesome winding guitar leads. Lou Barlow, back on bass, sings lead on penultimate track Lightning Bulb and the signature Barlow sounding, Back to Your Heart.
Great to see the old line up reunited for the first album since ‘Bug’. None of the fiery chemistry has been lost. Still enough tension and conflict of personality to create upon. No secret that Dinosaur were never the best of friends.
‘Beyond’ is produced by Mascis, an uplifting feel as always, his overdrive major power chords and the sweet muffled American drawl. The key elements that defined Dinosaur Jr’s sound back in those wild days touring with Sonic Youth, Nirvana and Babes in Toyland. Perhaps their finest visual accolade came on that tour filmed for the documentary ‘1991: The Year Punk Broke.’
Here we are sixteen years on and Dinsoaur Jr. step back out with ‘Beyond’ if only to prove that after all this time nobody does it better.