J Mascis

他是傳奇樂(lè)隊(duì)Dinosaur Jr.的主唱兼吉他手J Mascis，八零末期美國(guó)獨(dú)立搖滾的掌旗者之一，地位足以與Pixies的Frank Black，Sonic Youth的Thurston Moore平起平坐。
年輕時(shí)的J Mascis長(zhǎng)相俊美，曾以這副模樣登上雜志封面，不知擄獲了多少I(mǎi)ndie Girls的芳心。九零初期樂(lè)評(píng)甚至以:"Is J Mascis God?"來(lái)形容他的影響力，可見(jiàn)他的確曾叱吒一時(shí)。但為何才過(guò)了十年光景，J Mascis的長(zhǎng)相已與過(guò)去難以聯(lián)想，我們不得而知，也許酗酒或縱欲是原因之一。但可以確定的是，他與高中好友Lou Barlow組成的Dinosaur Jr.，其影響力與故事性同樣令人瞠目結(jié)舌。
Dinosaur Jr.在八零結(jié)束前發(fā)行的三張專(zhuān)輯Dinosaur、You're Living All Over Me與Bug，皆深遠(yuǎn)影響了九零以降的Grunge運(yùn)動(dòng)與Indie Rock風(fēng)潮，堪稱(chēng)后進(jìn)樂(lè)隊(duì)的寫(xiě)歌藍(lán)本。Village Voice樂(lè)評(píng)人Ken Switzer替他們的音樂(lè)下了絕佳的注腳:"Dinosaur Jr.'s songs lured listeners with gorgeous melodies and then assaulted them with noise."。簡(jiǎn)單來(lái)說(shuō)，Dinosaur Jr.綜合了Pixies的甜美吉他曲調(diào)與Sonic Youth的殘暴噪音聲線(xiàn)，將它們玩弄得更為精準(zhǔn)流暢，卻又不失年輕的硬蕊精神。
論譜曲能力，Dinosaur Jr.寫(xiě)出悅耳調(diào)子的功力與Pixies并駕齊驅(qū)，尤其第二張專(zhuān)輯You're Living All Over Me更是公認(rèn)的吉他音樂(lè)經(jīng)典作，幾乎每首歌都能讓人跟著合唱。如果想聽(tīng)令人頭皮發(fā)麻的噪音音墻，J Mascis摧殘吉他的手法與Thurston Moore相比簡(jiǎn)直不遑多讓?zhuān)诹α可仙踔粮鼮閮疵?。以團(tuán)員自己的說(shuō)法，Black Flag、Black Sabbath、M?torhead與Birthday Party都是影響Dinosaur Jr.音樂(lè)養(yǎng)成的重要因子，甚至早期R.E.M.的Jingly Guitar在他們寫(xiě)歌的結(jié)構(gòu)里也帶來(lái)了豐富的靈感。
然而第三張專(zhuān)輯發(fā)行后，J Mascis與Lou Barlow的關(guān)系已走入水火不容的地步。曾是高中好友的他們，憎恨彼此的程度只能以匪夷所思來(lái)形容。他們拒絕與對(duì)方交談，表演時(shí)不看對(duì)方一眼，J Mascis甚至于某次現(xiàn)場(chǎng)演出時(shí)在舞臺(tái)上用吉他敲了Lou Barlow的頭，雙方差點(diǎn)大打一架。1989年某天Lou Barlow接到J Mascis電話(huà)，通知他樂(lè)隊(duì)準(zhǔn)備解散；但隔天Lou Barlow卻在MTV News上得知J Mascis與鼓手Murph另外找了新的貝斯手加入樂(lè)隊(duì)。
Dinosaur Jr.根本沒(méi)有解散，只是Lou Barlow被難堪地踢出去了。
於是新陣容的Dinosaur Jr.持續(xù)發(fā)行專(zhuān)輯，而Lou Barlow也自組樂(lè)隊(duì)Sebadoh。此時(shí)Dinosaur Jr.已成了J Mascis一人掌權(quán)的獨(dú)裁體系，新作乏味無(wú)趣，不論人氣或影響力皆劇烈下滑。反觀Sebadoh卻擁有相當(dāng)好的口碑，Lou Barlow的個(gè)人發(fā)展顯然比老隊(duì)友好上太多。
故事寫(xiě)到這似乎該結(jié)束了。但與Mission of Burma、Iggy Pop & the Stooges、Gang of Four、Pixies、Slint與New York Dolls等樂(lè)隊(duì)一般，Dinosaur Jr.于去年宣布復(fù)合，從年頭巡迴至年尾。
復(fù)合的動(dòng)機(jī)值得玩味。今年初獨(dú)立名廠Merge重發(fā)了Dinosaur Jr.最早的三張經(jīng)典專(zhuān)輯，均收錄了Bonus Track甚至是Music Video，因此這次復(fù)合巡迴可說(shuō)是舊作重發(fā)的Promotion Tour。但團(tuán)員接受訪(fǎng)問(wèn)時(shí)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."翻譯成白話(huà)中文就是:“你們這些玩團(tuán)的年輕臭小子，老大要回來(lái)教你們幾招了。”
臺(tái)上的Dinosaur Jr.談話(huà)很少，只是一首接一首幾乎不間斷地表演著。J Mascis瘋狂拉著吉他搖桿、用力踩著腳下的效果器，配上他滿(mǎn)頭甩動(dòng)的銀白長(zhǎng)發(fā)，很像武俠小說(shuō)里描寫(xiě)的絕代高手。看似深藏不露，但真要發(fā)起功來(lái)，那雷擊般的吉他音波可是連遠(yuǎn)在東側(cè)的第五大道都聽(tīng)得到。Lou Barlow與Murph也各自埋首于自己的樂(lè)器里，稱(chēng)職扮演著支撐的角色。
短期內(nèi)Dinosaur Jr.不準(zhǔn)備譜寫(xiě)新曲，這是正確的決定。畢竟一開(kāi)始創(chuàng)作，只怕團(tuán)員間理念的不合又要浮上臺(tái)面。還是先以巡迴賺飽荷包要緊，未來(lái)的事就留給未來(lái)解決吧。
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.