Dinosaur Jr have announced a slew of tour dates in support of the new album “Farm” John Agnello just finished mixing in J’s Bisqueteen studio in Amherst, MA. An added bonus for those lucky enough to make it out to a show is a free 7″ or digital download with an interview and two songs that were recording live in the studio for Pitchfork.tv. A new track titled “I Don’t Wanna Go There” and the classic track “Tarpit”.
The new album will be released on the Jagjaguwar label.
Amma is a humanitarian and spiritual leader who has dedicated her life to uplifting suffering humanity through her embrace, which she offers to all regardless of caste, creed or religion. In the past 30 years she has hugged more than 24 million people throughout the world.
Amma has also started a vast range of humanitarian projects, including orphanages, charitable hospitals and free homes for the homeless. All the proceeds of Mascis’ CD go towards this cause. For information about Amma visit www.amma.org.
The CD finds Mascis both on electric and acoustic guitar, playing original devotional songs, including “Help Me, Amma,” “Amma What Now?,” “Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu,” “Please Remember That I’m Here” and “Take Me Home.”
Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu” is a Sanskrit mantra meaning “May All the Beings in all the Worlds Be Happy.” The final song, “Ayi Giri Nandini,” is a metalized version of a Sanskrit hymn by Adi Shankaracharya. Written around 1300 years ago, the hymn sings the glories of the Divine Mother as she slaughters the demonic forces of Mahisha Asura, the Buffalo Demon. Mahisha Asura symbolizes the dark negativities of humanity: greed, anger, laziness, pride, etc.
“This self-released disc represents the most beautiful and nakedly emotional music J Mascis has ever created… it’s as powerful as anything ever wrought by Dinosaur Jr, with the crucial difference that it soothes the soul instead of warping the brain.” – Jason Ankeny, allmusic.com:
TRACK LISTING:
An all-star tribute show for Melissa Rich Mulcahy will include a short set by Dinosaur Jr although advertised just as J Mascis in the show info.
On Friday, November 14th, at 7:30PM, local Pioneer Valley musicians will be hosting An Evening of Music in Memory of Melissa Rich Mulcahy, who died unexpectedly on September 13th. She was a dear friend to many musicians in the community and an avid supporter of their endeavors. The concert, to be held at the Northampton Center for the Arts in downtown Northampton, is an opportunity to celebrate her tremendous spirit and her love of music. All proceeds from the event will go directly to her family.
Called simply “J Mascis, Black Angels, Dandy Warhols,” the track, described by Dandys’ frontman Courtney Taylor-Taylor as a “prog-rock school fight song,” is a dark, driving piece, anchored by Dandys’ drummer Brent DeBoer and the tom-heavy beat, and Dinosaur Jr.’s J Mascis, who forgoes his usual guitar for a high-fretted bass.
Vocals — provided by Zia McCabe, Brent, and Brian Coates — though sparse, are powerful and effective. The single syllables, the distant shouts, become part of the swirling landscape. Indeed, the music conveys both the individual contribution of the players and the integrity of the whole piece, a 5-minute long depiction of grunge-fueled psychedelia.
The sessions with J Mascis and the Black Angels, recorded on different days at the Dandy Warhols’ Odditorium, were filmed and compiled into an episode, which helps to trace and explain the progress of the first track, and is now playing on the Breathe Easy MySpace site.
100% of profits will go to the Three Rivers Land Conservancy, a non-profit organization that works to conserve and preserve land by the Clackamas, Tualatin, and lower Willamette Rivers against urbanization. Through the purchases of these songs, along with and corporate contributions, the initial goal is to save 10,000 acres of Oregon’s natural habitat. All songs will be available for purchase on the Breathe Easy MySpace site.
J played at the Jazzmaster’s 50th Anniversary bash recently with Dave Schools (from Widespread Panic) on bass and Kyle Spence on drums which, as most of you may remember, was the last touring lineup of J Mascis + The Fog.
“For a misfit guitar, the Fender Jazzmaster has managed to hold its own through a half-century. On Friday night at the Knitting Factory, this guitar mustered the college-radio guitar heroes Tom Verlaine (of Television), J Mascis (of Dinosaur Jr.), Nels Cline (of Wilco) and Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo (of Sonic Youth) for a concert to celebrate its 50th anniversary. In their hands it was a guitar suited both to fine detail and blistering noise.”
Read the rest of the review @ the New York Times
* Richard Termine for The New York Times
Dinosaur Jr have announced a slew of tour dates in support of the new album “Farm” John Agnello just finished mixing in J’s Bisqueteen studio in Amherst, MA. An added bonus for those lucky enough to make it out to a show is a free 7″ or digital download with an interview and two songs that were recording live in the studio for Pitchfork.tv. A new track titled “I Don’t Wanna Go There” and the classic track “Tarpit”.
(PR) The first song from the 
