Dinosaur Jr.
I Bet On Sky

I begin with a premise: I have always been a fan of the first two Dinosaur Jr albums, "You are living all over me" and "Bug" (which I also had the pleasure to hear live in 2011); I have always been a lover of Mascis' style coined with his Jazzmaster, as well as the punctual basslines composed by Barlow and the powerful drumming of Murph.

A necessary premise to clarify an important thing: those Dinosaur Jr do not exist and will not exist anymore, and this was deduced right from their reunion a few years ago. However, this does not mean that our guys are no longer capable of writing beautiful songs and delivering a few strokes of class even now, in 2012. On the contrary! For example: the opener "Don’t Pretend You Didn’t Know", with a piano unexpectedly added to the usual guitar-bass-drums setup, the following "Watch The Corners", the first video of the album, with its rhythmic cadence and perfect vocal melody, the long ride "See It On Your Side" which closes the album, and the preceding song "Recognition", with its triplet punk rock (written and sung by Barlow) are worthy of the group's name. Also noteworthy are the power of "Pierce The Morning Rain" and the melancholic "Stick A Toe In". However, the main limitation of "I bet on sky" is Mascis' solos, far from the "noisy" genius that transpired from the masterpieces of the late '80s, and thus much more formulaic, and the few variations in sound and dynamics, especially in the central part, which make the overall listening a bit tiring.

Recommended album for those who are looking for a good rock record with easy melodies and those who love Mascis’ unmistakable voice.