Dinosaur Jr. frontman J Mascis is known as a slacker guitar god. He stands stoically on stage, barely moving, as he appears to effortlessly work through deft guitar solos and unhinged riffs. Unfortunately, Mascis developed a similar reputation as an interview subject, sitting quietly and offering slick non-answers.
That’s not to say Mascis can’t be funny or charming. As our interview drew to a close and I thanked him for his time, he began to relax a little. He told me about his youth as a mini-golf “enthusiast”. “I made a 3-foot putt for victory” at a mini-golf tournament, he said, but “that’s when I realized I was a choker…When I was 11, I choked.” And that’s when he decided, “Maybe I shouldn’t play sports.” » So instead of becoming a professional mini-golfer, Mascis formed one of the most important bands in alternative rock.
While most of his contemporaries have called it quits or are content to perform on stage to earn a paycheck, the original lineup of Mascis, bassist Lou Barlow and drummer Patrick Murphy continues to regularly release new LPs from reliable rockers. But Mascis says there’s no big secret to the group’s longevity. After more than 40 years of experience, he says, “I guess we have nothing better to do.” »
What may appear to an interviewer as frustrating indifference might actually be the key to Mascis’ longevity – for better or worse. Creatively and professionally, his modus operandi seems to roll with the punches and not overthink things.
For the new record There nearhe said, the group “just didn’t push it.” There were no marathon eight-hour studio sessions. They weren’t meticulously laying out bass lines or exchanging Logic sessions remotely. Mascis would arrive with fully prepared demos and the band would immediately begin recording, although Barlow and Murph were still learning their parts, “in case it happened quickly”.
The same kind of relaxed approach also influences Mascis’ equipment choices. He said, “I’m a tube purist, but it’s also a bit awkward sometimes,” so he uses whatever works. This means that while he’s mixing and mastering to tape, he’s also tracking in Pro Tools.
When it comes to designing iconic instruments with Fender, he’s equally laid back. “I try to, you know, do the big things that I want to do, but without making things too complicated…I think it’s better to be kind of cheap…just so people can do what they want with it.” The neck is his biggest concern, he says. “I’m a fan of jumbo frets and, you know, if the neck is good and the frets and all that, that’s the main thing. Most of the other stuff, you know, you can swap it out if you want.”
But this somewhat nonchalant attitude has also earned him some criticism. Two years ago, Mascis released a video for his solo track “Old Friends” made using generative AI. Talk with The edgehe finally addressed the controversy publicly. “Yeah, it was just a kid who did it,” he said. “I thought it looked cool, so… Yeah, that’s dipping my toes in the… I don’t do much with videos.” He paused several times while answering before finally admitting, “But yeah, I guess it’s a slippery slope.”
Likewise, he said that while he doesn’t believe there’s a place for AI in music creation, we need to recognize that it’s there whether we like it or not, and “I guess we’re learning to deal with it. And I hope it doesn’t kill us all.”
The only thing Mascis could muster strong feelings for was the band’s infamous concerts. (Dinosaur Jr.’s recent performance at little Baby’s All Right is what finally convinced me to start packing earplugs.) “I’ve noticed that the audience, too, seems more desperate for something based in reality,” he said, letting a touch of his purist heart shine through. “We don’t have in-ear monitors or click tracks. We have amps and you know, I just think some people are reacting to reality. Like they really need something that’s not, you know, computer generated or something.”
He lamented the lack of amps on stage (Mascis plays in front of three full stacks, even in a 280-person club) and the reliance on high-tech front-of-house setups. “It’s very weird. Now sound recordists create the sound instead of capturing it,” he said. Of course, his recognition of the visceral power of live music and its direct connection with audiences makes his indifference to AI all the more baffling.
Dinosaur Jr. is currently touring the United States behind There nearwhich is available now.
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