Dinosaur Jr. - Beyond

If at first you don’t succeed, try again. While the original lineup of Dinosaur Jr. never was able to capitalize fully on the breakthrough of alternative music (in part because they parted ways in 1989 and were essentially the J. Mascis Band moving forward), they returned in 2005 to re-bring the noise to the masses. Although the mainstream has never really showed up, a new generation of listeners has been able to experience an icon of post-punk shattering their eardrums. Now, the improbable has happened: Dinosaur Jr. is releasing Beyond, their first new material together in almost 20 years. For those who don’t know, this band releasing a new record in 2007 is almost as likely as the Pixies getting back together. Well, that happened, and both have been tearing it up onstage, with Dinosaur the only one to put out new music. Truth be told, this is a pretty badass record. It’s not nearly as ragged as the gem that was You’re Living All Over Me, but it shows their development as musicians without sacrificing the volume. Abandoning that early-era dynamic a long time ago, Beyond is how the mid-90s releases would have sounded had Murph and Lou Barlow been playing on them. What’s more, Mascis proves to be in his finest form in years and goes well above simply shredding - he’s playing monstrous walls of sound around tight, melodic songs. Don’t be swayed by the word “melodic,” though. This is a huge guitar album with solos and riffs galore. Since there’s no telling when this thing might implode, fans of Dinosaur Jr., should be ecstatic they’ve gotten more from the band than they ever could have dreamed. And it’s actually a reunion record that rocks. [www.dinosaurjr.com]