他是传奇乐队Dinosaur Jr.的主唱兼吉他手J Mascis，八零末期美国独立摇滚的掌旗者之一，地位足以与Pixies的Frank Black，Sonic Youth的Thurston Moore平起平坐。年轻时的J Mascis长相俊美，曾以这副模样登上杂志封面，不知掳获了多少Indie Girls的芳心。九零初期乐评甚至以:"Is J Mascis God?"来形容他的影响力，可见他的确曾叱吒一时。但为何才过了十年光景，J Mascis的长相已与过去难以联想，我们不得而知，也许酗酒或纵欲是原因之一。但可以确定的是，他与高中好友Lou Barlow组成的Dinosaur Jr.，其影响力与故事性同样令人瞠目结舌。Dinosaur Jr.在八零结束前发行的三张专辑Dinosaur、You're Living All Over Me与Bug，皆深远影响了九零以降的Grunge运动与Indie Rock风潮，堪称后进乐队的写歌蓝本。Village Voice乐评人Ken Switzer替他们的音乐下了绝佳的注脚:"Dinosaur Jr.'s songs lured listeners with gorgeous melodies and then assaulted them with noise."。简单来说，Dinosaur Jr.综合了Pixies的甜美吉他曲调与Sonic Youth的残暴噪音声线，将它们玩弄得更为精准流畅，却又不失年轻的硬蕊精神。论谱曲能力，Dinosaur Jr.写出悦耳调子的功力与Pixies并驾齐驱，尤其第二张专辑You're Living All Over Me更是公认的吉他音乐经典作，几乎每首歌都能让人跟着合唱。如果想听令人头皮发麻的噪音音墙，J Mascis摧残吉他的手法与Thurston Moore相比简直不遑多让，在力量上甚至更为凶猛。以团员自己的说法，Black Flag、Black Sabbath、M?torhead与Birthday Party都是影响Dinosaur Jr.音乐养成的重要因子，甚至早期R.E.M.的Jingly Guitar在他们写歌的结构里也带来了丰富的灵感。然而第三张专辑发行后，J Mascis与Lou Barlow的关系已走入水火不容的地步。曾是高中好友的他们，憎恨彼此的程度只能以匪夷所思来形容。他们拒绝与对方交谈，表演时不看对方一眼，J Mascis甚至于某次现场演出时在舞台上用吉他敲了Lou Barlow的头，双方差点大打一架。1989年某天Lou Barlow接到J Mascis电话，通知他乐队准备解散；但隔天Lou Barlow却在MTV News上得知J Mascis与鼓手Murph另外找了新的贝斯手加入乐队。Dinosaur Jr.根本没有解散，只是Lou Barlow被难堪地踢出去了。於是新阵容的Dinosaur Jr.持续发行专辑，而Lou Barlow也自组乐队Sebadoh。此时Dinosaur Jr.已成了J Mascis一人掌权的独裁体系，新作乏味无趣，不论人气或影响力皆剧烈下滑。反观Sebadoh却拥有相当好的口碑，Lou Barlow的个人发展显然比老队友好上太多。故事写到这似乎该结束了。但与Mission of Burma、Iggy Pop & the Stooges、Gang of Four、Pixies、Slint与New York Dolls等乐队一般，Dinosaur Jr.于去年宣布复合，从年头巡迴至年尾。复合的动机值得玩味。今年初独立名厂Merge重发了Dinosaur Jr.最早的三张经典专辑，均收录了Bonus Track甚至是Music Video，因此这次复合巡迴可说是旧作重发的Promotion Tour。但团员接受访问时又意有所指的表示:"It's so hip to be in a band now, it's like a fad or something, and it bums me out. It seems like mediocrity is OK now. I just wish people would be better, or if they weren't better, that they wouldn't play."翻译成白话中文就是:“你们这些玩团的年轻臭小子，老大要回来教你们几招了。”台上的Dinosaur Jr.谈话很少，只是一首接一首几乎不间断地表演着。J Mascis疯狂拉着吉他摇桿、用力踩着脚下的效果器，配上他满头甩动的银白长发，很像武侠小说里描写的绝代高手。看似深藏不露，但真要发起功来，那雷击般的吉他音波可是连远在东侧的第五大道都听得到。Lou Barlow与Murph也各自埋首于自己的乐器里，称职扮演着支撑的角色。短期内Dinosaur Jr.不准备谱写新曲，这是正确的决定。毕竟一开始创作，只怕团员间理念的不合又要浮上台面。还是先以巡迴赚饱荷包要紧，未来的事就留给未来解决吧。Best known as the remote frontman of the influential indie trio Dinosaur Jr., J. Mascis was also an occasional producer and film composer. Born December 10, 1965 in Amherst, Massachusetts, he first emerged as a member of the hardcore unit Deep Wound, founding Dinosaur in 1984. Over the course of acclaimed LPs like 1987s Youre Living All Over Me and 1988s Bug, the group emerged among the most highly regarded in alternative rock, with Mascis creaky, Neil Young-like vocals and monolithic guitar leads becoming primary influences on the burgeoning grunge movement. The group temporarily disbanded in 1989, largely to allow the legendarily non-communicative singer the opportunity to dismiss bassist Lou Barlow, who went on to form Sebadoh; in the meantime, Mascis sat in on drums with a series of bands, among them the Velvet Monkeys and GobbleHoof, even producing the latters eponymous 1990 LP. Upon re-forming Dinosaur Jr. in 1991, he scored Allison Anders independent film Gas Food Lodging a year later, making a cameo appearance in the picture itself; he and Anders became regular collaborators in the years to follow, most notably on her feature Grace of My Heart. In the meantime, Mascis also produced records for pals including fIREHOSE (Mr. Machinery Operator) and Tad (Inhaler), and in 1996 issued his solo debut Martin and Me. After 1997s Hand It Over, Dinosaur Jr. disbanded. Keeping on with his personal musical eclecticism, J. Mascis and his new outfit The Fog issued More Light in fall 2000. Featuring appearances from avant garde guitarist Kevin Shields and Guided By Voices vocalist Bob Pollard, the record was a fine return to form that excited Dinosaur Jr. fans who had been disappointed with his acoustic record. A tour with Elf Power followed, featuring longtime friend Mike Watt on bass and Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton at several tour dates. It was his riff-heavy jams with Asheton and Watt that inspired much of the music he started writing for his follow-up, as well as several skydiving experiences. When he stepped back into the studio, he kept the guest appearances down to a minimum and recorded Feel So Free for a 2002 release.