J Mascis - Several Shades Of Why

A beautifully fragile acoustic record.

Posted Sunday, 13 March 2011 in

J Mascis

Rating: 8

We last encountered J Mascis playing drums in his friends’ band Sweet Apple. Typically then, on what is, believe it or not, his first solo album, he’s done away with drums all together. The result is a beautifully fragile acoustic record that positions him as the missing link between Kurt Cobain and Johnny Cash. You could imagine some of these tunes, the gruff blub of ‘Not Enough’ or the repressed power of ‘Too Deep’, say, as Dinosaur Jr songs with a bit more amplification but it’s the delicacy and poise of the string-embellished title track that’s really astonishing. It adds another level to a legend that needed no embellishment.

Trevor Baker

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