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Good review, although I think the person needs to read some interviews…Lou doesn’t seem to like playing Dino jr songs…
LIVE: Dinosaur Jr. Roll Out The Hits
Monday July 18, 2005 @ 05:30 PM
By: ChartAttack.com StaffJuly 17, 2005
The Phoenix
Toronto, ON
by Noah LoveOh Pixies, what hath you wrought? The comeback craze, that’s what. I’m all for bands getting paid. And I think the whole reunion thing is kind of cool. I mean, I didn’t care about bands like The Pixies when I was 10 and I do now. So I’m happy that they’re going out and making the kind of money they never did 15 years ago. But it’s one thing for a band like Dinosaur Jr.’s original line-up to get back together and another for The La’s, whose major contribution to music is 400 cover versions of "There She Goes." Thankfully, it was the former who played the Phoenix on Sunday night.
The room was already pretty packed when The Meligrove Band went on just after 7 p.m. The Meligroves showcased songs from their new album, due out in about a month. Their high energy tunes kind of sound like Muse meets At The Drive-In, with countless twists and turns and excellent variation. In a few months, they could pack venues like this on their own. Bonus points for handling the clearly stoned heckler near the front who kept falling into the people around him and yelling at the band non-stop in between songs.
After about 40 minutes, the psychedelic lighting emerged from behind the curtains and so too did J. Mascis, Lou Barlow and Murph, the first and best Dinosaur Jr. You couldn’t have put three more opposite personalities on stage. Barlow, celebrating his 39th birthday, looked every bit the college prep student in a polo shirt and jeans. Mascis sported long hair and an old T-shirt, reaffirming his "hippie ’til I die" motif, while the shaved bald Murph played shirtless, landing him somewhere between jock and Minor Threat fan.
Appearances aside, the Phoenix was packed to the gills when the band took the stage. Technically, they did not disappoint. Mascis and Barlow played the living hell out of their respective instruments and Mascis’ voice sounded just as drone-y and tuneful as it did in 1988. Murph might be one of the best rock drummers in the history of time and hasn’t lost a step. Neither have Mascis or Barlow, for that matter.
The songs on the setlist, which drew mainly from You’re Living All Over Me, with some Bug and self-titled debut tunes thrown in for good measure, were played as if the band haven’t stopped at all. "Tarpit" and "Sludgefest" from You’re Living were so technically spot on that it felt as though the record was actually playing, but at 40 times the volume.
Oh yeah â€â€
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