J Mascis and The Fog - More Light

  by Geraint Jones

published: 17 / 12 / 2001

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With his unmistakable lethargic drawl and his equally recognisable mastery of the six-string melodic squall still intact, J. Mascis may not have made a radical departure from the hugely influential sound he fashioned with Dinosaur Jr, but on ‘More Light’, his first album since their demise, he has quite possibly recorded his best album to date. Whilst billed on the album as J Mascis + The Fog, ‘More Light’ is more or less a solo project. However plans are being made for a more permanent line-up of the band to be realised for live commitments. Mascis does though get some assistance on the album from no less than Kevin Shields, mainstay of those other indie pioneers, My Bloody Valentine, who also co-engineered the album with help from Andy Wilkinson. The album was recorded in Mascis’own studio, Bob’s Place, which is apparently named after his dog! Speculatively this may have inspired Mascis to invite Guided By Voices’ Bob Pollard to contribute vocals to three tracks on the album? Whatever the circumstances and extent of their involvement, the overall result is an exhilarating sonic rollercoaster ride, full of Mascis’ feedback drenched soloing amidst an excellent balance of total rock assault and other more refined material. Irrespective of the approach to the songs, Mascis’ ability to marry melody to mayhem is consistently impressive. My favourite track currently is the 70s style rocker ‘Back Before You Go’. Its crunching riffs demand that you get that air guitar out of storage immediately. Elsewhere, ‘More Light’, the title track which closes the album, conjures memories of Hawkwind’s ‘Silver Machine’, but recorded in a wind tunnel during a force 10 gale. On ‘Ammaring’, in contrast, Mascis’ guitar soars to dizzying heights on this almost plaintive ballad. Whilst you can detect the contributions from Kevin Shields and Robert Pollard, ‘More Light’ is unquestionably the work of J. Mascis and if he can also replicate this stunning album live with The Fog, I recommend you get engulfed immediately.

Track Listing:-

1 Sameday
2 Waistin
3 Where'd you go
4 Back before you go
5 Ground me to you
6 Ammaring
7 All the girls
8 I'm not fine
9 Can't I take this on
10 Does the kiss fit
11 More light

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