Dinosaur Jr. main man J Mascis has announced the release of What Do We Do Now, his fifth solo album, out on February 2 via Sub Pop. The lead single "Can't Believe We're Here" is classic Mascis (if you know, you know). And the visuals are a potpourri of guests delightfully lip-syncing and dancing (and in the case of Fred Armisen, pulling off some extremely convincing guitar licks).
J Mascis - Can’t Believe We're Here (Official Video)
Despite the classification of 'solo,' Mascis recruited Ken Maiuri (of the B-52's) to play keys and Matthew "Doc" Dunn to play steel guitar.
"When I’m writing for the band, I'm always trying to think of doing things Lou and Murph would fit into," Mascis said in a statement. "For myself, I'm thinking more about what I can do with just an acoustic guitar, even for the leads. Of course, this time, I added full drums and electric leads, although the rhythm parts are still all acoustic. Usually, I try to do the solo stuff more simply so I can play it by myself, but I really wanted to add the drums. Once that started, everything else just fell into place. So it ended up sounding a lot more like a band record. I dunno why I did that exactly, but it’s just what happened."
There's been a slight renaissance resurgence for Mascis. The Breeders 30th Anniversary edition of Last Splash features "Divine Mascis," a tune left behind during the original recording sessions and is an alternate version of "Divine Hammer."
Dinosaur Jr. are halfway through a four-show residency in London celebrating 30 years of Where You Been? and will bring that to Brooklyn, NY for seven nights at Music Hall of Williamsburg, Dec. 1-3 & 5-8.
"Can't Believe We're Here" guests:
Fred Armisen David Cross Amber Tamblyn Eugene Mirman Oliver Peck Bully Clare O'Kane IDLES Damian (F*cked Up) Todd Barry Dolly Wells Luluc
What Do We Do Now tracklist:
Can’t Believe We’re Here
What Do We Do Now
Right Behind You
You Don’t Understand Me
I Can’t Find You
Old Friends
It’s True
Set Me Down
Hangin' Out
End Is Gettin Shaky
