Dinosaur Jr – Sweep It Into Space
by Killian Laher

Has to be said that there’s something very reassuring about Dinosaur Jr.  Since reforming in 2007 they have settled into a very pleasant, heavy groove.  This album is no different, right from the hard-rocking opener I Ain’t which barrels along very nicely.  There’s a gritty, rough feel to Mascis’ guitar, but it’s uplifting, a really happy sound.  The strutting I Met The Stones and Walking To You are almost metal, but in a very good way, with the guitars hitting *hard*.

Songs like To Be Waiting, Hide Another Round and I Expect It Always will please the fans, basically being prime hard-rocking Dinosaur Jr.   We also get the breezy I Ran Away featuring a bit of guitar from Kurt Vile.

And Me borrows liberally from The Cure’s In Between Days with added riffs.  There’s always one track on any Dinosaur Jr, usually hidden around track eight or nine which in time reveals itself as a real grower.  This time around it is indeed track number eight, the rocking I Expect It Always.  There are the two customary Lou Barlow songs, the pleasantly loping Garden and You Wonder.

Taking a little longer than usual between albums hasn’t blunted Dinosaur Jr one bit, these songs belt beautifully out of the speakers.  Just don’t go expecting anything different now!

Track List:
1. I Ain’t
2. I Met The Stones
3. To Be Waiting
4. I Ran Away
5. Garden
6. Hide Another Round
7. And Me
8. I Expect It Always
9. Take It Back
10. N Say
11. Walking To You
12. You Wonder

I Ran Away