← more from
Sub Pop Records
We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

What Do We Do Now

by J Mascis

supported by
mishbone
mishbone thumbnail
mishbone Had a great time seeing the band in Dec in Brooklyn. Been looking forward to hearing this new record and pleased with the sound and performance. Thanks
Been a fan for yrs and look forward to more of the future ahead for the band and j as individual tracks.
Thx
Bone
🪬 Favorite track: Right Behind You.
Jon Aldridge
Jon Aldridge thumbnail
ted
ted thumbnail
HumphreyBigglestein
HumphreyBigglestein thumbnail
spacethudaction
spacethudaction thumbnail
Sam Dufton
Sam Dufton thumbnail
sgentile40
sgentile40 thumbnail
Poppabear
Poppabear thumbnail
Chris Fox
Chris Fox thumbnail
kolya
kolya thumbnail
markuskeu
markuskeu thumbnail
DrSchlau
DrSchlau thumbnail
heescliff
heescliff thumbnail
Samantha
Samantha thumbnail
Smet Günther
Smet Günther thumbnail
jimiwiz
jimiwiz thumbnail
DJL68
DJL68 thumbnail
T. Hack
T. Hack thumbnail
Rev C.D. Wood
Rev C.D. Wood thumbnail
grunger
grunger thumbnail
lokalradio
lokalradio thumbnail
Ben Adams
Ben Adams thumbnail
beerinhaler
beerinhaler thumbnail
(Makar)ury Girl
(Makar)ury Girl thumbnail
xeYe
xeYe thumbnail
kittycopps
kittycopps thumbnail
BigKarl
BigKarl thumbnail
Bryan Petersen
Bryan Petersen thumbnail
Ants Love Honey
Ants Love Honey thumbnail
Avedis Kargenian
Avedis Kargenian thumbnail
Screwballisgold
Screwballisgold thumbnail
till brandt
till brandt thumbnail
Zachary Schmitz
Zachary Schmitz thumbnail
!N
!N thumbnail
Drew D
Drew D thumbnail
Yant Martin-Keyte
Yant Martin-Keyte thumbnail
Brian Frickert
Brian Frickert thumbnail
olealf
olealf thumbnail
Dave Pugh
Dave Pugh thumbnail
Tom Blankenship
Tom Blankenship thumbnail
mjallen
mjallen thumbnail
dotsandspaces
dotsandspaces thumbnail
Craig Stroman
Craig Stroman thumbnail
young brett
young brett thumbnail
Mike Brinkley
Mike Brinkley thumbnail
Martin Clements
Martin Clements thumbnail
Mme. Chaos
Mme. Chaos thumbnail
matthew27
matthew27 thumbnail
miesmuschel
miesmuschel thumbnail
Niall
Niall thumbnail
ykeep2012
ykeep2012 thumbnail
Cory Dransfeldt
Cory Dransfeldt thumbnail
Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison thumbnail
Perrin Ellis
Perrin Ellis thumbnail
ALAN MOORE
ALAN MOORE thumbnail
schlense
schlense thumbnail
Matt Ford
Matt Ford thumbnail
csgreeley
csgreeley thumbnail
larsonsomething
larsonsomething thumbnail
nhinkle
nhinkle thumbnail
conraculix
conraculix thumbnail
more...
/

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      $10 USD  or more

     

  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    A copy of "What Do We Do Now" on CD.

    Includes unlimited streaming of What Do We Do Now via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 3 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $12 USD or more 

     

  • Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    A copy of "What Do We Do Now" on limited Loser Edition color vinyl.

    Includes unlimited streaming of What Do We Do Now via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 3 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $23 USD or more 

     

  • Cassette + Digital Album

    A copy of "What Do We Do Now" on cassette.

    Includes unlimited streaming of What Do We Do Now via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 3 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $10 USD or more 

     

  • T-Shirt/Shirt

    ships out within 3 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $29 USD or more 

     

  • Full Digital Discography

    7
    releases

    Get all 7 J Mascis releases available on Bandcamp and save 10%.

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of What Do We Do Now, Abstract Blues, Don't Do Me Like That, Elastic Days, Fade Into You, Several Shades of Why, and Tied to a Star. , and , .

    Purchasable with gift card

      $40.50 USD or more (10% OFF)

     

1.
Can’t Believe We're Here 03:58 video
info
buy track
2.
What Do We Do Now 05:00
info
buy track
3.
Right Behind You 04:20
info
buy track
4.
You Don’t Understand Me 03:50
info
buy track
5.
I Can’t Find You 04:24
info
buy track
6.
Old Friends 04:13 video
info
buy track
7.
It's True 05:16
info
buy track
8.
Set Me Down 03:53 video
info
buy track
9.
Hangin Out 04:53
info
buy track
10.
End Is Gettin Shaky 04:48
info
buy track

about

What Do We Do Now is the fifth solo studio LP recorded by J Mascis since 1996. This is obviously not a very aggressive release schedule, but when you figure in the live albums, guest spots, and records done with his various other bands (Dinosaur Jr., The Fog, Heavy Blanket, Witch, Sweet Apple, and so on), well, to paraphrase Lou Reed, “J's week beats your year.”

What Do We Do Now began to come together during the waning days of the Pandemic. Utilizing his own Bisquiteen Studio, J started working on writing a series of tunes on acoustic with a different dynamic than the stuff he creates for Dino. “When I'm writing for the band,” he says, “I'm always trying to think of doing things Lou and Murph would fit into. 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.”

Two guest musicians are playing this time out; Western Mass local Ken Mauri (of the B52s) plays piano on several tracks. Since J himself has some experience with keys, when asked why he needed a hired gun, he says, “Ken is great, and he plays all the keys. I tried playing some keyboards on the first Fog album, but I'm really only comfortable playing the white notes, so it's kind of limiting. [laughs] Nowadays, I could just turn the pitch on a mini Mellotron to play different sounds, but black keys just seem hard. For whatever reason, I just like banging on the white ones. Seems like it's harder to figure out how to stretch your fingers around the other ones.”

Mauri has no such qualms and plays all the keys very damn well. He sounds especially great on “I Can't Find You,” where he is Jack Nitzsche to J's Neil Young, creating one of the album's loveliest tunes. The other guest musician, Matthew “Doc” Dunn, is also prominent on this track. Dunn's steel guitar manages to both widen and soften the musical edges of the music, giving it a full classicist profile. Dunn is an Ontario-based polymath who J met through Matt Valentine. After J played on Doc's great 2022 Sub Pop single, “Your Feel,” he figured it was time for payback. Both Dunn and Mauri add beautifully to the songs here, helping to transform them from acoustic sketches into full-blown post-core power ballads.

What Do We Do Now is the finest set of solo tunes J has yet penned, and the way they're presented is just about perfect. Asked if he would be touring to support the album, J says he'll be doing some weekend dates, but he probably won't be putting a band together. And I'm sure these songs will sound great solo and acoustic, but the arrangements on this album are truly great and put a cool, different spin on Mascis' instantly recognizable approach to making music.

So, what do we do now? Not sure. But apparently, what J does is to make one of his most killer records ever. Hats off to him.

credits

released February 2, 2024

© 2024 Sub Pop Records

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

J Mascis image

J Mascis Amherst, Massachusetts

contact / help

Contact J Mascis

Streaming and
Download help

Redeem code

Report this album or account

If you like J Mascis, you may also like:

Bandcamp Daily  your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Featuring Riley Pinkerton (aka The Rat Queen) from the theatrical NYC rockers, Castle Rat.
listen now