Dinosaur Jr. singer, J Mascis, has revealed his new solo single ‘Set Me Down.’ This song is taken from his forthcoming fifth solo album, titled ‘What Do We Do Now,’ scheduled for release on February 2, 2024, through Sub Pop. In addition to collaborations with notable guest musicians such as The B-52s’ Ken Mauri and Matthew ‘Doc’ Dunn, the album showcases a unique departure for the alternative rock icon. For the first time in his solo career, J Mascis explores “full drum and electric leads,” while maintaining acoustic rhythm parts throughout the record.
“When I’m writing for the band, I’m always trying to think of doing things Lou and Murph would fit into,” he explains. “For myself, I’m thinking more about what I can do with just an acoustic guitar, even for the leads. Of course, this time, I added full drums and electric leads, although the rhythm parts are still all acoustic. Usually, I try to do the solo stuff more simply so I can play it by myself, but I really wanted to add the drums. Once that started, everything else just fell into place. So it ended up sounding a lot more like a band record. I dunno why I did that exactly, but it’s just what happened.”