Dinosaur Jr. - Where You Been (1993 / Reissued 2006)

My love affair with this album, and Dinosaur Jr, began in a far-off time called 1994. I was an impressionable teenager, and had recently been experimenting with substance(s) that were certainly not good for my mental health: baggy jeans, a bright orange Cross-Colours hat, and Kriss Kross. Things were looking grim. Luckily, at that time, my bedroom was next to that of my brother David. I began to hear strange, beautiful noises coming from his stereo. Songs that, for no reason I could pinpoint, picked me up out of my mediocre teen-existence and propelled me to some place better. To say Dinosaur Jr helped me to find myself in the teenage wilderness might be somewhat melodramatic, however, it cannot be denied that, at the very least, they gave me something to hold on to as I swam (sometimes drowned) in the bullshit that is a teenage existence. This album, made at the height of the grunge/alternative music era is a stone-cold classic. Fans of Dinsoaur Jr's earlier (pre-Green Mind) work will often dismiss the latter career albums, however, for the most part, this is due to ridiculous "indie-er than though" attitudes. J Mascis' guitar work on this album, and in general, is jaw-dropping , while his song-writing skills here are at their pinnacle. It is difficult to name favourite tracks, however, What Else Is New would be there, as would Out There and the quieter Going Home. The sixth song on the album, "Get Me, is quite possibly my all-time favourite song. The 2006 reissue of the album is blessed with three extra tracks - the stand-out of which is an amazing eight minute live version of What Else Is New, which is worth the price of admission alone.

Check Out: http://jmascis.com/