As one-third of Dinosaur Jr and one-third of Sebadoh Lou Barlow is an indie rock icon, with an emphasis on the rock.

He helped forge one of the greatest guitar-driven indie bands of the Alternative Nation, and then after leaving Dinosaur Jr due to tensions with Dinosaur songwriter J Mascis he continued his career with Sebadoh and created a string of influential cult albums in III, Bakesale and Harmacy.  The latter two albums are getting the deluxe reissue treatment starting with Bakesale on April 4. The album will contain 25 bonus tracks and Sebadoh is launching a tour, which lands at Neumos Saturday night ($15, 9 p.m.), to support the release.

“I had a really good time making that record. It was a good time for me personally,” Barlow said about Bakesale during a phone interview from his California home. “The songs are really airtight. They are perfectly short and I was really in a good spot writing lyrics. It was a very, very direct writing process and I can hear that when I listen to that album.”

Harmcy on the other hand is a bit of a different story for Barlow. The record continues the classic Sebadoh lo-fi sound and is still considered one of the band’s best records by fans but the tumultuous circumstances surrounding its release after Bakesale’s success impacted Barlow. Continue reading →