BAND OF HORSES – There might be no other band that was able to channel the generational anxiety in those early millennial years and turn it into such powerful and inclusive art quite like Band of Horses. Band of Horses fashioned gorgeously ragged epics, Ben Bridwell’s high-flying vocals and eccentric enunciation floating like a specter that felt like a prelude to a dream. Full of profundity, truth, and sometimes just homespun advice on how to live, Band of Horses songs have become anthems and touchstones for fans — meditations on change, longing, and what a person will do to make things right. And what you do when you can’t.

The band’s debut Everything All the Time (2006) introduced their sweeping, emotionally resonant sound, and the albums that followed have cemented their place in the indie rock canon. They’ve released six studio albums, including Infinite Arms (2010), which earned a Grammy nomination. Most recently, the critically acclaimed Things Are Great (2022) finds the band recapturing the raw emotion and unpolished punk- rock spirit of its earlier days.

Dinosaur Jr. was founded in 1984 and the group emerged among the most highly regarded in alternative rock. By reintroducing volume and attack in his songs, Mascis shed the strict limitations of early 1980s hardcore, becoming an influence on the burgeoning grunge movement. Mascis’ body of work continues to inspire a generation of guitar players and songwriters today.

When the original line up of Mascis, Lou Barlow on bass and drummer Murph re-formed in 2005 for select live dates it was apparent that the years apart had not eroded any of their vitality. Restoring the sound established by the opening hat-trick gambit of Dinosaur, You’re Living All Over Me, and Bug, 2007’s Beyond continued the band’s march into rock greatness by making old ears smile and new ears bleed afresh. The original lineup has now released five studio albums since their reunion, most recently 2021’s Sweep It Into Space on Jagjaguwar Records.