Where You Been [Bonus Tracks] [Remaster]

Performer: Dinosaur Jr.
Engineer: Tim O'Hair; John Pearson; James Birtwhistle; John Agnello
Producer: J Mascis; James Birtwhistle; Paul Nickson; Matt Abels (Reissue)
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: Dinosaur Jr.: J Mascis (vocals, guitar, piano, organ, tympani, chimes, drums); Mike Johnson (bass, guitar, piano, background vocals); Murph (drums). Additional personnel: Kurt Fedora (guitar); Larry Packer (violin); Dave Mason (viola); Rob Turner, Abbie Newton (cellos); George Berz (tambourine); Tiffany Anders (background vocals). Recorded at Dreamland, Woodstock, New York. Personnel: Mike Johnson (vocals, guitar, piano, bass instrument, background vocals); Kurt Fedora (guitar); Larry Packer (violin); Dave Mason (viola); Rob Turner (cello); Tiffany Anders (vocals); George Berz (tambourine). Audio Mixer: John Agnello. Liner Note Author: Bryan Coley. Recording information: Baby Monster (11/24/1992-10/08/1994); Brixton Academy (11/24/1992-10/08/1994); Dreamland (11/24/1992-10/08/1994); Maida Vale 5 (11/24/1992-10/08/1994); Master Control (11/24/1992-10/08/1994); Wendell Recording Stuios (11/24/1992-10/08/1994). Dinosaur Jr.'s baroque moment finds J. Mascis bringing in a string section and adding the occasional odd instrument himself to his band's power-trio splatter. But if Mascis is the Neil Young of the post-hard-core generation, that doesn't make WHERE YOU BEEN his HARVEST. Au contraire, it's still loaded with feedback squalls, distorted guitar solos and all other manner of electric melancholy. It does make WHERE YOU BEEN his most integrated pop moment, tipping the overall balance away from the sprawling noise and toward pop structure, offering some moments of sub-orchestral beauty. "What Else Is New," a melodic rocker with its share of blues guitar leads, has a surprising two-minute coda that builds on a strummed acoustic guitar with a cello, then tympani, then a full string section. "Not The Same" is a ballad that seamlessly integrates those same elements with a gorgeously arpeggiated electric guitar motif, and a Young-like falsetto vocal. By the time Where You Been surfaced, Seattle had completely exploded, and given that Dinosaur Jr.'s sound, attitude, and more were as proto-slacker as could be, the temptation must have been great to cash in. But J Mascis stuck to his guns, and there's little about Where You Been that would have seemed out of place on Green Mind or even some earlier records. Recorded with a full band throughout, Mike Johnson and Murph lay down does-the-job rhythm tracks while Mascis tackles almost everything else. Where You Been is occasionally moody and dark but otherwise is more rough fun. Opening track "Out There" is one of the most mournful things Mascis has recorded, with an especially yearning chorus, but his fiery solo still makes it classic Dinosaur Jr. "Start Choppin" immediately follows, its quick, catchy lead riff helping to make it as close to a radio hit as the band ever had -- and, of course, a big ol' solo or two adding to the fun of it all. From there on in it's a pur�ed blast of punk, classic rock, and more. It may be business as usual, but it's good business just the same, whether it's the gentle "Not the Same," on which Mascis does his best Neil Young impersonation, or the stuttering feedback snorts and rips on "Hide," on which he borrows a bit back from disciple Kevin Shields. Other highlights include "Get Me," a melancholic, steady cruncher with another trademark solo of the gods, and the unjustly ignored "What Else Is New," which sounds like a mid-'70s rock ballad with louder volume and none of the crud, right down to the concluding string section. [Where You Been was reissued in 2006 in an expanded and remastered version containing three bonus tracks: a previously unreleased John Peel session of "Hide," the B-side "Keeblin'," and a live version of "What Else Is New."] ~ Ned Raggett

Rolling Stone (2/18/93, p.58) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...Dinosaur Jr. is a musical cargo cult, turning the detritus of another culture into something that can be used--and maybe even worshipped. For one of the crowning glories of slacker culture, look no further..." Spin (3/93, p.69) - Highly Recommended - "...singer-guitarist-protoslacker Mascis has produced a seamless mesh of revitalized '70s, '80s, and '90s cliches...WHERE YOU BEEN sports the most fluid, emotive, searing guitar-playing Mascis has yet achieved...glorious..." Entertainment Weekly (3/5/93, p.59) - "...The trio's pileups of extra loud, messy garage pop have been polished into catchy mutations of creamy classic rock..." - Rating: B+ Q (2/93, p.79) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...getting to know WHERE YOU BEEN is a rewarding experience...[singer/guitarist] J. Mascis's brilliant stroke is to pull a beautiful melody from an abyss of noise and drone...terrific..." Magnet (p.90) - "Mascis is the unapologetic class president of the more-is-more school of guitar....His subtle touches...are what make WHERE YOU BEEN a grunge-era classic that's only improved with age." Option (5-6/93, p.99) - "...WHERE YOU BEEN is similar to TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT, with lyrics that wander out into the ozone, all lonely, paranoid and melancholic: it's fetal position stuff..." Melody Maker (1/1/94, p.76) - Ranked #7 in Melody Maker's list of the `Albums Of The Year' for 1993 - "...[an] astonishing return to form...achingly exquisite..." Village Voice (3/1/94, p.5) - Ranked #40 in the Village Voice's 1993 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll. Kerrang (Magazine) (p.53) - "[A] searing classic rock set awash with Mascis's endlessly inspired soloing..." Mojo (Publisher) (p.110) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[The album] saw Mascis fruitfully channeling his fret histrionics through a set of consistently strong material that confirmed his ineffable gift for pop gnarl." NME (Magazine) (2/6/93, p.30) - "...What was once a negative, going nowhere trend is now crackling with positivity...Feedback heroics split the album like lightning bolts...reminiscent of Neil Young's chord-slaughtering WELD..."

Formed in Amherst, Massachusetts during the mid-1980s, Dinosaur Jr. crafted punky, ramshackle songs that featured J. Mascis' sleepy vocals and meandering, feedback-drenched guitars. After a series of well received indie releases, culminating with 1988's BUG, bassist Lou Barlow departed to form Sebadoh, and the band (Mascis and drummer Murph) signed with a major label. In 1991, the group released their masterpiece, GREEN MIND, an album that displayed a poppier, dreamier sound. However, Dinosaur Jr. was essentially a Mascis solo project by this point, and although Murph and other musicians appeared on subsequent albums, Dino Jr. remained a Mascis-driven vehicle until he officially went solo in the late '90s.

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