As the central force in Dinosaur Jr., J Mascis defined the band with his mumbly baritone vocals and god-level guitar work heavy on volume, distortion, and technically impressive soloing. With much of his solo output, however, Mascis goes acoustic, leaving his trembling singing sitting naked atop melancholic open chords. Fed Up and Feeling Strange: Live and in Person 1993-1998 presents three of Mascis' intimate solo concerts, two previously released sets, and one that had gone unreleased before this collection. One of the three volumes was originally released as Martin + Me, and pulls highlights from a 1995 solo acoustic tour that include shambling versions of Dinosaur Jr. tunes as well as covers of the Wipers' Greg Sage, Carly Simon, and an especially spirited rendition of the Smiths' "The Boy with a Thorn in His Side." New to this collection is the previously unreleased outtake "Grab It." Another disc previously released as Live at CBGB's captures Mascis' first solo acoustic show, recorded at the legendary punk club in 1993. The audio is a little rougher and the set list is similar to the selections from Martin + Me, with the addition of Where You Been's eerie centerpiece "Not the Same." The previously unreleased Copenhagen concert was recorded after the release of 1997's Hand It Over, and includes several songs from that album and material from as far back in Mascis' catalog as You're Living All Over Me opener "Little Furry Things" and "Repulsion" from Dinosaur Jr.'s 1985 debut. The crowd sounds more enthusiastic here than on Fed Up and Feeling Strange's other volumes, audibly singing along with Mascis' falsetto vocals on "Goin' Home." This concert also includes an out-of-tune rendition of "Too Hard," which is introduced as a new song and would show up in a far sludgier version as the B-side of a J Mascis + The Fog single in 2001. Without his signature soloing or the backing of a full-blast rhythm section, Fed Up and Feeling Strange emphasizes' Mascis' particularities and unique talents as a songwriter. His fumbling stoner persona struggles with social interactions and emotional complexities on almost every track, and in these stripped-down acoustic forms, the bittersweet beauty of his songs is one of the only things on display.
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