Ancient Animals Trivia Quiz

Answer: J Mascis

Mascis and Barlow were high school buddies who ended up playing together in a band called Deep Wound, from 1982 until its break-up in 1984. At this point Mascis' talent as a songwriter emerged and the first version of their own band appeared when the pair enlisted former Deep Wound vocalist Charlie Nakajima, and drummer Murph. After Nakajima used one of their own performances to express an anti-police message Mascis dissolved the band and recommenced a new one, the next day, without Nakajima. Barlow remained with the group until 1989 and was replaced two years later by Mike Johnson until 1997, when the band broke up. Murph stayed with Mascis until 1993 and he was replaced by George Berz until 1997 but only for the band's live performances. Mascis played drums for their studio recordings during this time.

Mascis, Barlow and Murph would eventually reform as a trio.

Answer: The Dinosaurs

The Dinosaurs was a collection of musicians (supergroup) from such well known bands as Country Joe and the Fish, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Hot Tuna, Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane. They formed in 1982 and released their little known album "Dinosaurs" in 1988. They would release a further album "Friends of Extinction" in 2005. Neither of them made any significant impact.

After the departure of Nakajima, and Mascis dissolving and then reforming the band, they opted for the name Dinosaur (1984). Their self titled debut album would be released a year later. The album made little impact and sold in the vicinity of 1,500 copies. Their follow-up album, "You're All Over Me" (1987) was a different story and it brought them to the attention of The Dinosaurs who said "you can't do that" and sued them for the use of their name. Mascis and Barlow resolved the issue by placing "Jr." at the end of the band's name.

Answer: Shoegaze

The career of Dinosaur Jr. can be divided into three acts with this album landing in the midst of what can be labelled their "indie" period. "You're Living All Over Me", with its wild amalgam that ranged from hardcore punk to Neil Young styled melodies and back to Sonic Youth driven noise bombs sits firmly in the middle of the that first act.

It has been lauded by many critics as one of the most important albums of the 1980s, credited with the placement of the guitar at the front of the alternative sound and being a direct influence on the grunge scene that would rise to prominence in the early 1990s on the back of Nirvana's "Nevermind" album.

The album would also catch the ear of Kevin Shields, the mercurial mastermind behind the sound of My Bloody Valentine (MBV), who was taken in by the sonic twist and careening riffs produced by Mascis.

The seeds of this influence would germinate within MBV's 1988 EP "You Made Me Realise" and blossom in their peerless 1991 release "Loveless". Shields would acknowledge their (Dinosaur Jr.'s) influence in an interview with Tom Murphy from "Westworld" in April 2009.

Answer: Freak Scene

Despite not charting on the mainstream lists, "Freak Scene" became a college radio hit and cemented Dinosaur Jr.'s reputation within the underground scene. The album "Bug" followed to strong acclaim and it built on the momentum established by the band's former album "You're Living All Over Me" (1987). Mascis continued his experimentation of fusing noise and hard rock; however, he also signalled growth with the introduction of folk-rock resonations in tracks such as "Pond Song" and "The Post". But the group's two main songwriters, Mascis and Barlow, were at loggerheads and as their tensions rose their communication broke down. Eventually Mascis would inform Barlow that the band was finished. Barlow would leave to form the band Sebadoh while Mascis would resurrect the Dinosaur Jr. name, though this time as a duo with drummer, Murph.

Answer: Priscilla

Joseph Szabo is the man who took the iconic photograph. In an interview with Monster Children magazine (November, 2017) he indicated that he'd gone down to Jones Beach (New York) to take some people shots. He'd no sooner stepped on the beach when he spotted the girl (or is it a boy) no more than ten feet away. He knew he had to take the shot immediately. He reeled off two photographs before stopping to check his shutter speed and aperture. By the time he'd looked up the child, who'd appeared to be pre or early teens was gone, nowhere to be seen. Move forward a year and Szabo is teaching an art class. The picture has been published in a magazine and one of the "kids" is flicking through it when she exclaims "Priscilla, this is you". Szabo admitted that the girl's resemblance was uncanny and resolved that she was, indeed, the girl in the photo. He also admitted that, deep down, the girl's true identity is still a mystery.

Szabo indicated that the photograph had appeared as a double spread in the magazine "Almost Grown". He was approached by J. Mascis for permission to use it for an album cover. Apparently someone had spotted it during rehearsals and stated "this has to be an album cover" and the feeling amongst the gathering was unanimous.

(Footnote) The names given above are all first names of women who have had relationships with Elvis Presley. Priscilla Beaulieu, who would become his wife, actress Anne Helm, Judy Spreckels and June Juanico.

Answer: It was their first album release with an independent label

Dinosaur Jr.'s previous two albums with the independent label SST were, essentially, experiments by that band that took some strange detours into free form noise. Whilst these inquiries into sonic innovation were ground breaking, they didn't sell records for the band. However, they did lay the groundwork for their eventual breakthrough into the mainstream when they were signed to Blanco y Negro, a subsidiary of Sire Records. "Green Mind" would peak at number 168 on Billboard's Hot 200.

Lou Barlow had left just prior to the band's signing with the major and "Green Mind" would essentially become a solo project for Mascis. Yes "Murph" was still there, but he only appears as the drummer on three tracks on the album. Mascis would use a series of bass players to perform on the disc while playing the rest of the instruments by himself. The album also heralds a new, slightly mellower, sound for the band. Even, lyrically, the disc is toned down, as Stephen Erlewine (Allmusic) would observe "the first three albums were fuelled by the anger and frustration of youth, here Mascis appears to be arguing with himself".

Answer: Nirvana

It was revealed in a 2012 article in Rolling Stone magazine that J Mascis, in an interview with Spin magazine, had confirmed the rumours that he'd nearly joined Nirvana. He boasted that Kurt Cobain had made the request to him on two separate occasions; the first was after a New Jersey gig in 1989 that featured Nirvana, Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr.

It appeared that, at the time, Cobain was not happy with the work of Jason Everman and suggested to Mascis he should join as their guitarist. Mascis was not keen.

The second approach from Cobain was during the making of the "Sliver" single and, after Mascis' disinterest, the gig went to Mudhoney's Dan Peters. This would be Peters only appearance on a Nirvana recording.

Answer: Start Choppin'

"Start Choppin'" arose from the band's 1993 album, "Where You Been". At this point the grunge scene in Seattle had exploded and their good mates, Nirvana, were the darlings of the generation. There was an opportunity for Dinosaur Jr. to follow the trend and cash in big time. Mascis, however, remained true to his mission and produced a recording that built on the "slacker" sound and attitude that the band had developed. "Start Choppin'", with its catchy front-on riff, would be the closest the band would get to producing a radio-friendly hit during this period.

The single would peak at number three on the US Modern Rock charts and push the album to number fifty on Billboard's 200 Album chart. This success led to the band appearing at the third Lollapalooza tour, but it would also see the disintegration of the band, with the last of the original trio, Murph the drummer, walking out on Mascis and joining The Lemonheads.

Answer: False

Nothing could be further from the truth. The impasse in communication between Mascis and Barlow was still there and Barlow, as a result, was not to be seen. Further, Murph had walked out on Mascis, leaving the latter with drum duties as well. The only person that still remained was replacement (for Barlow) bass player Mike Johnson. He too was having itchy feet and was looking toward solo projects of his own.

"Without a Sound" would be, commercially, successful with the lead single "Feel the Pain" destined to be a song that would appear on the band's future "Greatest Hits" packages. However, critically, it drew a mixed response. Allmusic critic Tim Sendra praised the growth exhibited within the recording and J. Mascis' exploration of his tender side. However, Rolling Stone magazine's Matt Diehl, felt the album suffered from this restraint, which, whilst it may have been an attempt at musical maturity, "offends by its inoffensiveness". Mascis would admit that the album is not amongst his favourites and that he was under personal pressures at the time, dealing with the loss of his father and struggling with the insecurities of the band's future.

Answer: It was recorded by the original trio of Barlow, Mascis and Murph

And so began the third phase of Dinosaur Jr.'s life, the reunion. 1997's "Hand It Over" album was the last to carry the band's name under their major label, Sire Records. It was, for all intents, a solo effort by Mascis. He then let the clock run down on the Sire contract and simply let the band fade away while he attended to a series of soundtracks, solo projects and the formation of a new band, Fog. The only reason they got back together in 2005 was to support the re-issue of their first three albums. Here's the thing, the reunion worked. It worked so well that the band decided to record a new album and organised a world tour.

"Beyond" is a belter. It doesn't raise the band's stakes, nor does it provide radical changes in direction but what it does very well is collect all of the strengths that the band had acquired over time and poured them into one powerful and cohesive album. By 2016 the band had remained together longer than at any time in their career and produced a further three studio albums after "Beyond".