Dinosaur Jr in Azerrad’s book "Our Band Could Be Your L

[Bucky Ramone]

I’m reading the book at the moment, and I enjoy it very much. It is clearly written by someone who loves the music. Just some minor points, it’s a shame that the story of a band finishes in the opinion of Mr. Azerrad when they sign to a major record-label, so the Replacement’s ‘Tim’ (one of their greatest records) isn’t even mentioned. And why didn’t he do a chapter on the Dead Kennedys or Bad Brains? It’s also fun to read how the members of Sonic Youth are always ‘networking’ through the whole scene….

[SG]

Shrafro-I pulled up an old thread in the what you`re reading section,check that out.
The Mascis/Barlow issue is like the Mould/Hart issue,the Farrar/Tweedy issue,etc.people in a band disagreeing over things,I have`nt read the book so I don`t know what`s said,hopefully the truth in what Azzerad researched.
It seems being in a band is rough.People who start up a band enter as friends and leave as enemies,all the time spent with the other members and the lack of space away from each other does`nt happen much when you`re touring alot,you`re stuck with someone night and day you thought was cool to hang around with but turns out to be annoying,plus factor in creative diffrences.Those guys I mentioned have diffrent syles of song writing no wonder they split,they could`nt make the two styles coherent enough to keep the band going.
Ever hear why the Velvet Underground did`nt continue in their reunion in the early 90`s?Reed and Cale can`t stand each other,even after 30 years.

[shrafro]

Salamiguy: you make a valid and understood point. Azerrad retells some tragically funny stories about the band in their van, where each of the guys’ most annoying traits soaked through. One is the (in)famous cookie monster incident. The best, in my opinion, though, is when Murph (I’m pretty sure it was Murph) sleepwalks, ready to kill Lou until he wakes up, right when he’s about to reach him. It’s crazy. Band dynamics are always really interesting and complex at times; I think Dinosaur’s is certainly an intriguing one. But the guys definitely were in too close quarters for too long a time. In reference to the Velvet Underground, I was actually discussing Lou in my music class today because there was a good article on him in the Sunday NY Times. Reed and Cale definitely can’t stand eachother. It would be cool, though, to listen to them reunite and have a half-hour duke-out on "Sister Ray."

[ November 27, 2001: Message edited by: shrafro ]</p>

[shrafro]

I read this book about four times this summer (I was in another country and was really bored) and I think Azerrad painted a pretty clear picture of the band’s dynamic, both musically and in terms of the relationship between the members. It doesn’t make J. out to be the nicest guy, which rings true in some respects (as much as we hate to admit it), but it really makes Lou seem like a total victim. The book sort of portrays tha band as a clashing of egos (or the lack of egos). It seeems that the band was never really balanced with all the tension, etc…. Nonetheless, I think when praising the band’s music itself, though, the book does a phenomenal (sp?) of giving credit where the credit is due. It’s a really good book, with great insights into Dinosaur and it’s contemporaries. It misses out, though, on the Meat Puppets, Dead Kennedys, and Camper van Beethoven. It’s a great book, though, and I’m looking forward to seeing what you guys have to say.

[Author]

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