My second-ever gig was sneaking in to see Dinosaur Jr. at a tiny, packed club in 1991, a show played at such a punishing volume that my ears rang for weeks afterward. At one brief moment between songs, someone in the audience shouted from within the guitar mayhem, “J, we can’t hear your voice!” To which J Mascis simply replied, “Good.” Then he fired the cylinders right back up. Needless to say, it was a life-changing experience.

Alongside staples like “Freak Scene” – only a few years old at the time – the set leaned heavily on their then-new album, Green Mind. The band’s fourth release, it was a transitional record, and arguably one of the great guitar albums of the ’90s, complete with one of the decade’s most iconic cover designs.

Following their self-titled 1985 debut, the Amherst, MA trio released two stone-cold classics: 1987’s You’re Living All Over Me and 1988’s Bug. Both were on the legendary underground label SST. Three years was a long gap between releases back then, and they returned without bassist Lou Barlow, newly signed to a major label — right in the middle of the post-Nevermind bidding-war era — and with a subtly refined take on their quintessential slacker sound.

Green Mind softens the attack with acoustic guitars, but without sounding more polished. The usual bedlam is dialed back just enough to let the melodies breathe, resulting in a looser, more focused record that never sacrifices edge. In many ways, this is Mascis’s project — as songwriter, producer and primary performer — with just some additional contributions from original drummer Murph, Jay Spiegel, B.A.L.L.’s Don Fleming and engineer Sean Slade.

From immediate standouts like “The Wagon,” “How’d You Pin That One On Me” and the title track to mellow stoner favorites such as “Water” and “Thumb,” Green Mind strikes a near-perfect balance between ramshackle mumbling and epic, Crazy Horse-style guitar anthems. Dinosaur Jr. would go on to make more classic albums in a career that’s been nothing short of remarkable, but Green Mind was one they grew into. It still blows my mind today.