J. Mascis and Dinosaur Jr. absolutely rocked it last night at the Pageant. I had never seen the band before and am glad I decided to go.

From the start of their hour plus set of classics and newbies, it was evident that their studio recordings never quite did their music justice. The formula wasn’t complicated. Like Built to Spill, one of countless Dinosaur apostles, they showed up, put their poster up, plugged in and earned their money, putting on a solid, old-school rock show.

If you were watching from a sound-proof room, you wouldn’t have thought much of the show as the trio didn’t move much onstage. Through the speakers, though, patrons were treated with a face-melting bombardment of soulful guitar rock that was Led Zeppelin-esque. You couldn’t make out a word of what guitarist Mascis was singing, but it didn’t matter. The lyrics were just filler to get to his guitar solos, which came early and often. Some songs, Mascis went on for over five minutes without losing a crowd member.

Lou Barlow, who opened the show with his solo act, provided additional vocals while sawing away at his bass. Drummer Murph pounded away at the set gleefully like he was 20 again.