Despite making music for around three decades, Several Shades Of Why is actually erstwhile Dinosaur Jnr mainman and all-round slacker icon J. Mascis’ first ever solo record. And while he may have gained notoriety in the ‘90s for his fuzzy riffs, summery anthems and lazy drawl, don’t expect to hear anything even slightly uptempo on this release, as it appears that – having hidden behind band guises such as Sweet Apple, Witch and the Fog for years – the musician is now ready to be himself, and the resulting album is a naked and raw excursion down an alleyway marked “folk”.
All ten of the tracks are acoustic-based, awkward stories of romance, which suggest that Mascis was right to take his foot off the distortion pedal for a little while. The likes of ‘Listen To Me’ and ‘Make It Right’ are truly touching; there’s a real honesty to ‘Very Nervous And Love’; and the title-track is endearing too, in a thoroughly downbeat sort of a way. The guest appearances from Kurt Vile, Kevin Drew (Broken Social Scene), Sophie Trudeau (A Silver Mount Zion) and Ben Bridwell (Band Of Horses) are also something of a masterstroke and add to the music without overshadowing Mr. Mascis. Although it gets a little samey towards the end, on the whole, J has skillfully created a world that you’ll want to re-visit time and time again.