You might be forgiven for thinking that J Mascis without monster guitars and the distinctive solos that define Dinosaur Jr is kinda, well, pointless, like a Sunday roast without the roast. However much you might like vegetables, a plateful of the things with no meat (or meat alternative - I'm quite partial to a bit of nut loaf or lentil bake myself, but you get the point) is just a bit bland and lacking in substance. I'll be the first to admit to having found his work with The Fog rather underwhelming.
Completely stripped back to next to nothing but an acoustic guitar as accompaniment to Mascis' plaintive tones, 'Several Shades of Why' is, for reasons that aren't entirely easy to define, an altogether different proposition. Yes, it's distinctly Mascis, but at the same time, it sounds completely fresh. From the offset, with opener 'Listen to Me', 'Several Shades' reminds me of everything I like about the man's music.
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Delicate strings weave through the title track, and there is a trademark electric guitar break on ‘Where Are You’, and he’s joined by a handful of noteworthy collaborators, including Kurt Vile, Kurt Fedora, Kevin Drew of broken Social Scene and Band of Horses' Ben Bridewell. For the most part, though, 'Several Shades of Why' is a sparingly arranged set which places Mascis' shy, awkward and poignant lyrics, matched perfectly by his shy, awkward vocal delivery, centre stage - with his head hung and the lights down low, of course.
Put simply, Mascis knows how to pull on the heartstrings, and he does it brilliantly here.
J Mascis Online
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