Solo Career 'Easy Compared To' Playing In Dinosaur Jr

If you’ve ever read or seen an interview with J Mascis before, you’ll know about the strange dichotomy that shadows his work and personality. Known as one of the loudest guitarists on Earth – not to take away from his amazing virtuosity, which has kept him in the top echelons of guitarists for decades – his music is offset by his incredibly relaxed and quiet demeanour. For music journalists, this is quite frequently hell, but the age-old adage of letting the music speak for itself really does stand it’s ground when it comes to J Mascis.

“I’m just preparing a turkey at the moment. It’s Thanksgiving tomorrow,” Mascis says. “It’s not really much of a holiday. It’s more of an excuse to eat a whole lot of food. But it’s a day off, so… yeah.”

"I tried to have a concept for [Several Shades Of Why]. I tried to have a specific vibe."

Long since the early days of Deep Wound and the first incarnation of Dinosaur Jr, Mascis is now deep in the throes of a number of bands; the stoner metal outfit Witch, the reformed Dinosaur Jr, vand his own solo work, all while maintaining a close relationship with his family. It’s in fact his last two solo albums – and this year’s Tied To A Star – which have evoked a more idiosyncratic side of Mascis, far away from the usual wall of noise associated with his music. Driven more by his old acoustic Martin than the usual Jazzmaster, Tied To A Star especially has seen his technical prowess translated to quiet, quaint and almost folk arrangements. “It’s not really something I think about,” Mascis says on the topic of how he approaches playing acoustically. “I guess it’s just the same. I start playing and writing, and then by the end of it I either have something that works or doesn’t. There isn’t a lot of thought that goes into it. It’s just… there’s the song. I mean, I tried to have a concept for [Several Shades Of Why]. I tried to have a specific vibe. It’s something I hadn’t really done before, y’know, actually sitting down and writing songs just there, and then have them be on a record. There’s usually a lot more work that goes into it. That’s what I like about this process, I guess: it’s pretty easy compared to playing in Dinosaur or whatever. It’s just playing songs.”

Mascis seems simply happy just to be doing what he does, irregardless of the dogmatic fanbase that has built around his career. His next Australian stopover sees him play with an equally worshipped act in Scottish post-rockers Mogwai for Perth Festival. “Yeah, it’ll be good to play with those guys I guess. I like doing things like that, playing with guys who do something different to you. I mean, it’s all music, and you take influences from wherever you can. But yeah, it’ll be a cool show. I’m just happy to be supporting, there’s less pressure on you when you’re not headlining.”

Above all, Mascis is probably most excited to get back to Australia, one of his favourite countries to tour. “I like it how the beach is in the city,” he states. “Like, you don’t have to go too far, it’s right there. Everyone’s usually real friendly to me, too.”