J Mascis didn’t need a producer to tell him to revisit the beginning. When Dinosaur Jr. tracked There Near — their first album in five years — Mascis said he gave himself Rick Rubin’s advice: “sit down and listen to their first album and say let’s get back to that sound.” So he found a 1970s Mesa Boogie MK 1 amplifier, the same model used during the band’s 1985 debut, and built the record’s guitar sound around it. Premier Guitar described the resulting tone as “even more animalistic than usual.” The Fall Tour 2026 brings Dinosaur Jr. to Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater on Thursday, November 5.
About the Show
There Near, out August 28 via Jagjaguwar, is the band’s first record since Sweep It Into Space and their sixth studio album since the reunion. It was tracked at Bisquiteen Studio in Amherst, Massachusetts in short, intense sessions over a year, with Mascis (guitar, vocals), Lou Barlow (bass, vocals), and Murph (drums) working alongside Amherst keyboardist Ken Mauri on piano and organ. Mascis described what he was after: “I bought the same amp that Chris Dixon had when we made our first album…it has a real interesting sound I haven’t gotten for a while.” Lead single “Several Got Away” arrives with the band’s characteristic fuzz intact, including a squealing guitar solo after the bridge; the accompanying video was directed by Guy Kozak. The fall tour kicked off October 9 in Las Vegas and runs through a November 7 close in New Orleans; Austin falls near the end of a route that has moved through Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Dallas, and Houston. Opening all dates is Detroit singer-songwriter Stef Chura, known for her raw vocal style and the way she threads garage rock and punk energy through melodic pop instincts. Her new album, Dancing Alone on the Concrete — her first in seven years, out October 2 on Saddle Creek — was produced by Robert Schneider of Apples in Stereo and features R.E.M.’s Peter Buck and Mike Mills among its contributors.
Venue & Logistics
The show is at Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater, the outdoor stage on Red River Street in Austin. Doors open at 7 p.m.; the show starts at 8 p.m. All ages.
Tickets
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