Matt Kiernan / News Editor
Dinosaur Jr. played with opening band Awesome Color at the Daniel Street club in Milford, Conn. to a crowd of young and old fans looking for an alternative spin on classic rock music.
“We’re not going to be playing anything off that album tonight,” said Dinosaur Jr. bassist Lou Barlow to a crowd of disappointed fans screaming “Boo!” in regards to songs from their upcoming album Farm. Instead the band decided to play many of the songs from their back-catalogue of albums.
“Feel the Pain”, “Sludgefest”, “Freak Scene” and many of the songs from their 2007 release Beyond were all performed with amplifiers turned to maximum volume which filled the small club. One of their biggest hits “Freak Scene” was played to thrilled fans who shouted, “Cause when I need a friend it’s still you!” when the lyrics came up.
People attending the show were given the choice of getting a 7” or music download code for free that contained the songs “I Don’t Wanna Go There” off of Farm and a live version of “Tarpit” from their 1987 release You’re Living All Over Me.
Lead singer and guitar player J. Mascis played his electric guitar as if it were as easy as tying his shoes while he swayed back and forth while Lou Barlow hovered over his bass guitar and drummer Murph was sweating up a storm thundering on the drums.
A mosh pit broke out a few songs into Dinosaur’s performance with a group of fans thrashing themselves across the center of the floor and crowd surfing, which caused a few members of the audience to get kicked out of the show. One member was tossed out for allegedly kicking someone in the head.
Awesome Color performed songs from their new 2008 album Electric Aborigines, which included, “Eyes of Light”, “Already Down” and “Taste It”. The group gave off an Iggy Pop and the Stooges feel without the self-mutilation and stage power that the Stooges had.
The lead singer and guitar player Derek Stanton brought riffs and guitar solos at a rapid rate while playing their songs but seemed to be trying a little hard to impress. Stanton became flustered for a moment when he realized lead singer Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. was standing in the audience to watch the last few songs of their set.
