Dinosaur Jr: Bug

Dinosaur Jr: Bug

1988

SST Records

Format I Own it on: Vinyl

Track Listing: 1. Freak Scene  2. No Bones  3. They Always Come  4. Yeah We Know  5. Let It Ride  6. Pond Song  7. Budge  8. The Post  9. Don't



Man, last time I was at Eastside Records, I found a big stack of 70's Playboy mags and I decided to pick up this particular issue ...

...Mainly, because it reminded me of the cover of Ween's "Chocolate and Cheese"...



Anyway, as I was flipping through the spunk-encrusted pages (and after I was done speculating that, "Woah...All these girls are probably, like, 60 years old now...") I ran across an advertisement that just might be the most beautiful image I've ever seen...

Redd Foxx hoisting a can of Colt 45!! Suitable for framing!! Oh my God...I love everything about this...I've been a Redd Foxx fan as far back as I can remember and a malt liquor enthusiast to boot...I probably should have saved this until I got to the Redd Foxx section, but I couldn't resist sharing this image with you now...Considering the snail's pace the blog has been moving at lately it could be a good 20 years before I get to Redd Foxx!!

Looking at that Colt 45 kinda makes me want a beer...Do we have any beers in the fridge?

Yessum we do...Let's rock the Dino, shall we? (cracks knuckles, cracks beer, puts on record)....

"Bug" is probably my second favorite album by the band...How can you not rank this at the top of their discography? I mean, this is the album with "Freak Scene" on it, which is the "Rock and Roll All Nite"of indie rock...It's so far above anything off "You're Living All Over Me," shifting its approach constantly;  Going from jangle pop to noise rock to heavy metal chug to acoustic balladry with J's simple, drowsy vocal melody holding it all together...And when it culminates with that final, high-flying guitar solo you know that they know they've nailed it...

"Sometimes I don't thrill you,
Sometimes I think I'll kill you,
Just don't let me fuck up will you,
'Cause when I need a friend it's still you..."

(You know that part rules... )

Of course, nothing can top that perfect opener, but the rest of the album is solid...Particularly the pop-punk-y "They Always Come"which gets my vote for the album's catchiest chorus and "Budge" where you get to hear Murph pound the unholy shit out of his snare drum...I always like the sound of Lou's growly distorted bass on that one too...Did I mention how much these guys rock?...

It's cool to hear them stretch out their sound in new directions too..."Pond Song" is pretty folk rock (with a few bursts of squalling noise tossed in here and there) and correct me if I'm wrong, but I always hear "The Post" as an epic blues dirge...Maybe it's the "She's my post to lean on And I just cut her down..." line...It sounds rather murder ballad-y to me, although I don't think that's what J's getting at...

 I can see how the big album-closer "Don't" might drive some people up a wall, but I love the shit out of it...I'm betting there was probably a time in my life when I thought it was the best song on the album...I can't help it..I love raw, unadulterated noise...The noisier the better and this is pretty darn noisy....Nearly six minutes of screaming guitar, blasts of white noise, and Lou puking the words, "WHHHHYYYYY?????!!!!!!! WHY DON'T YOU LIKE ME?!?!?!!!"  Yea? Why don't you like him?!  I love the way the drums just calmly lurch through the proceedings like the masked killer in a slasher flick...Murph sounds absolutely unfazed by his caustic surroundings...Boom...clack..Boom-Boom...clack...Boom-clack...Steady....

I love this record....It's a little more laid-back than the preceding two albums but that only showcases how great a songwriter J was becoming, and with Lou and Murph still in the picture they never sounded more powerful...Powerful and Laid-back...That's the best way I can describe this...

 Here's "Budge" by Dinosaur Jr...Listen away...