Dinosaur Jr. @ The Arches, 30 January

J. Mascis confesses that Dinosaur Jr. are still "shaking off the dust" having not played together for a while. This is the first night of a tour that will see them play Europe, Australia and the U.S.., and there are a few kinks still to work out – J. Mascis' distinctively fragile, upper-range howl drifts in and out of the mix, while his blistering guitar solos come close to blowing the roof off on occasion (no bad thing, that), occasionally dominating the songs. Drummer Murph is on point throughout though, and the Lou Barlow-led numbers are a welcome counterpoint.

There are highlights from I Bet On Sky – a plaintive, surging Don't Pretend You Didn't Know reveals itself as one of their best new songs, while Watch the Corners is positively anthemic. By the time they serve Out There, the trio are finally firing on all cylinders, Mascis' guitar swooping and soaring mightily. Start Choppin' draws huge cheers but then nearly falls apart at the seams, and then Feel the Pain is sung by everyone in the room. For an encore they reprise a rare 1989 single – a cover of The Cure's Just Like Heaven. Barlow's screamo 'YOU!' says it all. That dust has been well and truly shaken.  [Bram  E. Gieben]