Alt-Rock trio Dinosaur Jr. rises again with "Farm"

NEW YORK (Billboard) - The veteran alt-rock band Dinosaur Jr. made a splash on the Billboard 200 in June, scoring the highest-charting album of the band's 25-year career.

"Farm," which debuted at No. 29, also signals the beginning of a fruitful relationship with indie label Jagjaguwar.

With its fuzzed-out guitar riffs and melodic choruses, "Farm" has earned critical acclaim and strong word-of-mouth as a return to the trio's glory days. The group's comeback, however, didn't come easy. After releasing three guitar-heavy albums on SST Records and amassing a dedicated following in the late '80s, tension between guitarist J. Mascis and bassist Lou Barlow eventually led to the latter's 1989 departure.

Dinosaur Jr. soldiered on, signing to Sire Records in 1990. Mascis and drummer Murph, along with a revolving door of collaborators, released two albums on Sire before Murph also left the band. Mascis released two more albums before retiring the band in 1997.

After slowly reconnecting, and then having their first three albums reissued on Merge in 2005, Mascis, Barlow and Murph reunited for a handful of shows in 2006. Dinosaur Jr. released "Beyond" -- the first album featuring the band's original lineup since 1988's "Bug" -- in 2007 on Fat Possum Records.

The album's rich textures surprised rock fans who had written off the band. But Mascis had never lost sight of the trio's natural chemistry. "It was easier writing songs with all of the members in mind," he says. "We could just stay with what we know and make the sound we've always made."

For "Farm," the band holed up in Easthampton, Mass., last winter and recorded for four months. During that period, the trio was contacted by Jagjaguwar, whose roster (Bon Iver, Ladyhawk) compelled the band to sign a multi-album deal in February.

Dinosaur Jr. played a run of U.S. dates this past spring and performed the album's scorching opener, "Pieces," on "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" June 25, two days after the album's release. It has since sold 27,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

The act will begin a European tour August 19 before returning stateside for a fall trek in October. Dinosaur Jr. plans to keep recording with Jagjaguwar, but for now its focus is to make the most of its road stints.

"We'll have some other things in the works, but we're not looking too far ahead," Mascis says. "We're just gearing up to survive this tour."

(Editing by Sheri Linden at Reuters)