Dinosaur Jr

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{{Infobox Band | band_name = Dinosaur Jr | image = | caption = | years_active = 1985-present | origin = Amherst, Massachusetts | country = United States | music_genre = Alternative rock | record_label = Merge Records | current_members = J Mascis
Lou Barlow
Emmett Patrick Murphy | past_members = | website = http://www.dinosaurjr.com/ }}

Dinosaur Jr is an American alternative rock band.

Contents

History

They were formed as Dinosaur in 1983 in Amherst, Massachusetts by J Mascis (guitar and vocals) and his high school classmate Lou Barlow (bass guitar), following the break-up of their hardcore punk band Deep Wound. Shortly afterwards, Murph (Emmett Patrick Murphy, drums) joined them. They changed their name following the release of their debut, Dinosaur (1985), when another band called The Dinosaurs, featuring ex-members of Country Joe and the Fish and Jefferson Airplane, sued them. (They still used the name Dinosaur on their albums at least as late as 1987. Some copies of You're Living All Over Me still lack the "Jr")

In 1987, they signed to SST Records and with them they released what is often considered their best album, You're Living All Over Me (1987), as well as Bug (1988). They never had much commercial success, but gained something of a cult following and became known for their very loud concerts. They were championed by Sonic Youth, who helped them get signed to SST. Dinosaur's songs were melodic, fairly simply structured and covered in guitar noise. These first albums were a major influence on the up-and-coming band Nirvana, and were on par with Dinosaur Jr.'s contemporaries the Pixies.

Tensions ran high between Mascis and Barlow, and in 1989 Barlow was kicked out of the band, continuing to work with his own band, Sebadoh. Dinosaur Jr subsequently became little more than a pseudonym for Mascis. He switched labels to Blanco y Negro, Green Mind (1991) being his first release there. Through the 1990s, Mascis sometimes explored quieter and more tranquil shores than Dinosaur Jr had in the 1980s. The band formed part of the 1992 "Rollercoaster" tour. A package tour based on the succesful US package- "Lollapolooza". The tour featured The Jesus & Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine & Blur. On the 1993 release, Where You Been, the opening track ("Out There") had an accompanying video and was aired on MTV for a short time, as the show 120 Minutes was still popular as a late-night "alternative" video show.

Mascis continues to release albums under his new band J Mascis and the Fog.

In 2004, Mascis regained the master rights to the first three Dinosaur Jr albums from SST, and arranged for their reissue on the Merge label in early 2005. The reissues coincided with the announcement that the original lineup of Mascis, Barlow and Murph was reuniting for a summer tour.

2006 will see the continuation of the Dinosaur Jr reunion tour, as well as the band's first DVD release and a new album. The new album will be Lou Barlow's first recording with the band since 1989.

Dinosaur Jr's career is chronicled in Our Band Could Be Your Life, a book about several important American underground rock groups during the 1980s, and are one of the curators of this year's All Tomorrow's Parties festival in May.

Discography

Studio albums

Year Title Label
1985 Dinosaur Homestead (reissued 2005 on Merge Records)
1987 You're Living All Over Me SST (reissued 2005 on Merge Records)
1988 Bug SST (reissued 2005 on Merge Records)
1991 Green Mind Blanco y Negro / Sire
1993 Where You Been Blanco y Negro / Sire
1994 Without a Sound Blanco y Negro / Sire
1997 Hand It Over Blanco y Negro / Sire

EPs & Singles

Year Title Label
1987 Keep The Glove SST
1987 Little Furry Things SST
1988 Freak Scene SST
1989 Just Like Heaven SST
1991 The Wagon Blanco y Negro / Sire
1991 Whatever's Cool With Me Blanco y Negro / Sire
1993 Start Choppin' Blanco y Negro / Sire
1993 Out There Blanco y Negro / Sire
1994 Feel The Pain Blanco y Negro / Sire
1995 I Don't Think So Blanco y Negro / Sire
1997 Take A Run At The Sun Blanco y Negro / Sire

Compilations

Year Title Label
1991 Fossils SST
2000 BBC: In Session Fuel 2000
2001 Ear-Bleeding Country: The Best of Dinosaur Jr Rhino

Singles

Year Title Chart positions Album
US Modern Rock
1991 "The Wagon" #22 Green Mind
1994 "Feel the Pain" #4 Without a Sound

See also

References

External links

fr:Dinosaur Jr it:Dinosaur Jr. nl:Dinosaur Jr. no:Dinosaur Jr. sv:Dinosaur Jr.