News
26 July 2026 – J Mascis Makes The Grand Ole Opry Consider More Distortion
By Editorial Team - July 26, 2026
Summary
Dinosaur Jr. guitarist J Mascis makes his Grand Ole Opry debut in Nashville, performing 'Steering Wheel Drums' and covering Neil Young.
Key Facts
- J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. makes his debut performance at the Grand Ole Opry.
- Setlist featured solo track 'Steering Wheel Drums' inside the historic Nashville venue.
- Also performed a cover of Neil Young's 'Cortez the Killer' at a local record store.
- Entities: J Mascis, Dinosaur Jr., Grand Ole Opry, Steering Wheel Drums, Neil Young, Nashville
- Tags: j-mascis, dinosaur-jr, grand-ole-opry, nashville, steering-wheel-drums, neil-young
Dinosaur Jr. mastermind <a href="/tags/j-mascis">J Mascis</a> made his Grand Ole Opry debut, bringing his famously weathered voice and unmistakable guitar presence into one of country music’s most historic spaces. The performance included ‘Steering Wheel Drums’, while a separate Nashville record-store appearance found Mascis joining a cover of Neil Young’s ‘Cortez the Killer’.
Mascis has always carried traces of folk and country beneath the enormous distortion associated with Dinosaur Jr., so the Opry appearance was less unnatural than it might initially appear. Strip away several layers of amplifier punishment and many of his songs are built from plainspoken melody and lonely roads. The occasion proved that the Opry circle can accommodate more than polished country tradition. Discover more live rock updates in our <a href="/genres/americana">Americana and Alternative</a> coverage.